Dirty-sweet girl & sexy beast
by BeeJay Shadowlady
Summary: No matter if a man had a taste for a certain kind of women for years, he needs variety every now and then. And even a two-fisted dynamo like Murdoc Niccals is no exception from that rule. When he meets a woman that's quite different from the girls usually catching his eye, he doesn't hesitate to take her – unaware that his priorities are to be reconsidered.


The familiar fog of alcoholic intoxication started to fade away when sleep was wearing off. GORILLAZ' bassist Murdoc Niccals squinted into the dim light streaming through the Union Jack hung in front of the big cruddy bed room window of his Winnebago, right above his bed. Clamping his eyelids shut again, he slowly stretched his green-skinned body to full length of almost 6 foot, winced at his joints crackling quietly – a day-to-day reminder that age was relentlessly catching up with him after all – and shifted into a more comfortable position to wait for the moment he'd wake up entirely. Suddenly, his hand brushed something soft and warm slightly bouncing against his hand. Suspiciously, he cupped the object and ran his thumb along the soft curve to a small nub hardening slightly to his touch. Then, he could identify the object as a woman's breast. A sigh escaped him when scenes from last night flickered in front of his inner eye as he tried to recall how this ball of beautifully warm and soft flesh had found the way into his bed, brightening up the out-of-town engagement. He saw himself leaning on a bar counter, dressed in a blue shirt with his sleeves rolled up and the buttons opened down to his belly, a pair of dark-blue straight-cut jeans and his boots, downing one Tequila shot after another and smoking cigarettes by the dozen. So far, it had been an ordinary after-show night. But then he remembered a flock of girls having stood near him, each of them being not very much more than a long-haired child dressed to kill with high heels, an incredibly short and tight dress and not quite right makeup having written "all-the-way-groupie" all over her face. But then, the image of a woman on a stool quite near him dawned to the bassist. The ghost of a smile spread on his face while reviewing the incidents like watching a movie.

The woman is a brown-skinned woman of about his age – give or take 3 to 5 years – wearing a sleeveless red dress decorated with a swirl of golden dots over a long-sleeved black tee shirt. When she slips off the stool to rummage the front pockets on her handbag made of a black jeans – legs cut off at the crotch – with a dark red leather pouch attached to the jeans part, Murdoc notices the dress falling down to her calves like a waterfall, the red cloth caressing her slightly overweight body. A dark brown spot sits below the right corner of her mouth. Her dark brown hair is braided into thin rasta braids falling down to her shoulders. Small red, white and blue pearls are woven into the braids' ends, locking them shut. A black cigarette sits between her slim index and middle finger. Her carefully clipped nails are polished in a shimmering greenish-purple, being her only make-up since her rosey lips don't look painted. When she moves her head to draw on her cigarette, eat chicken wings from a plate in front of her or clean her fingers with her tongue, the braids dance and bounce, showing big silver loops dangling from her ears.

The bassist is caught by surprise when she offers him the plate of chicken wings as well as a couple of Tequila shots to go with the food. Murdoc takes both gladly since the gig, no matter how good, has drained a lot of energy. All in all, she isn't one of the drop dead beauties usually catching his eye but there is something in her whole appearance Murdoc finds very interesting. He can't tell if it's the rather pleasant sight of her breasts bulging underneath the black tee shirt or the way she sucks the chicken wing's spices off her fingertips – obviously not above indulging food. While taking a drag on her cigarette, she looks him over with a kind of unreadable judgement before she clears her throat to say, "What do you think about Hell?"

"Hell?" Murdoc manages to reply.

"Hell, yes!" the woman repeats, tipping a small pile of ash into the next ashtray with a swift movement, hanging her handbag on a hook beneath the counter and sitting on the stool again, "They say that you're one of the assorted few who went into the Kingdom Of Darkness and live to tell about it. And they say that you made some friends in low places. Or was that nothing but a big fat lie, Mr. Murdoc Niccals?"

"Eh?" The bassist's mind switches from the soothing warmth of Tequila running down his throat and the question if this woman makes love like she eats back to the dark mellow voice mentioning his name.

"You _are_ Murdoc Niccals, ain't you?" she continues.

"Yup, but don't shout it out, or they all want one," Murdoc manages to say in a voice that's even more raspy than usually. He has to swallow hard when her almost black beady eyes meet his. His hand gropes the counter for another soothing mouthful of Tequila. Finding an ice-cold shot glass, he drains it quickly before being able to make eye contact again and reply, "No, it was no big fat lie, as you put it, Miss Know-it-all. I have been downstairs, in Hades, looking for someone. Was no picnic. And besides, what's your name?"

"Bedelia Tozier," she says, taking another drag on her cigarette and extending her right hand with a thick silver band holding a small diamond on her pinkie. Murdoc takes the hand to give it a gentle squeeze. Her question – not really matching the fact that she obviously has recognized him – has caught the bassist a bit off guard, and he's curious to hear more from the voice ringing so dark and pleasant in his ear. Thus, he returns the question.

"Well, I imagine Hell to be some place where every wish is fulfilled with no chance to escape – even if you're fed up to the back teeth with it," Bedelia says after blowing two thin trails of smoke through her nostrils. Murdoc watches her peeling juicy meat and crispy skin off a delicate bone with her teeth, sucking the spices off her fingers and taking a sip from her glass which is actually a medium-sized solid glass cylinder with a scooped-out triangle martini glass top sitting on top of two egg-shaped and different-sized bubbles. Creamed whiskey on crushed ice fills the insides. Murdoc watches the tip of her tongue quickly and carefully clean the glass's rim and feels his crotch start to throb.

"Interesting idea," the bassist replies after a few moments, "You mean like personal perdition?"

"Now we're talking," Bedelia agrees when a fresh cigarette sits between her fingers. About half an hour later, Murdoc can't keep ignoring the erection that has becoming noticable all of a sudden. The urge to go home and get closer to this deliciously round body is over-whelming. Bedelia agrees when he asks her to come along and see his sheets of genuine Egyptian silk. They leave the bar together, heading for the Winnebago. Before he opens the door, Murdoc cups her face, looks into her eyes and claims her lips. Once again, he's surprised by her compliancy and her tongue's eager response to his exploring her mouth and cherishing the sweet creamed whiskey mingled with the cold of the crushed ice, the spices of the chicken wings and her smoke as well as her cherry-flavoured lips.

Murdoc rolled over and propped himself up on one elbow, resting his head on the hand to look at the body next to him, being partially covered by the dark purple satin blankets. He eyed her bare shoulders with the smooth-looking caramel-coloured skin, and the bare leg sticking out and couldn't help smiling to himself when he remembered how he had taken off her high wedged-heeled shoes and her black stockings wearing a white collar edge and slowly had run his long nails along the instep of her left foot and up her inner leg to put her in the mood to sleep with him. It makes her moan, quietly first but louder with every inch his nails proceed. But even if she allows him to strip her like a Hershey bar – not to mention a lack of refusal against the kiss he hasn't seen on a girl in years –, she resists to give herself up to him all the way, unlike any other girl who had been his guest so far.

When the bassist stops striking her leg, resting his hand on her knee, Bedelia surprises him again by taking off her jewelery and offering him a blow job. It's a surprisingly great experience to the bassist since Bedelia has eaten some peppermint tablets from a small black metal box before unzipping his jeans and examing his impressive manhood, uncovered by underwear, just as usual. When she grips it firmly yet gentle to wrap her lips around the head, the touch of her breath, chilled by the ice and the peppermints against his flesh, sends a shiver up Murdoc's spine, lasting for almost 5 minutes and making him utter an animalish groan from the depth of his throat and grip the blanket hard enough to shred it. His breathing turns into short and hasty gasps while his long tongue slips out of the corner of his mouth, the tip bouncing excitedly at the height of his Adam's apple as Bedelia's tongue wanders up and down the shaft of his rod, quickly flicking the spot where the root and his balls meet before her lips crawl back to the tip, slowly wrapping around the head and sucking. Her oral cavity warming up and the tip of her tongue additionally poking the slit at the tip of the head makes him cum in her mouth just a few moments later. Bedelia swallows as much as she can before lieing down on top of the blanket and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Sweet Satan..." Murdoc says when he can think clearly again, "That was... Wow..." However, he hardly recognizes the raspy voice as his own.

"Thanks." Bedelia smiles, turning her back on Murdoc and giving him the chance to snuggle his crooked nose into the flesh of her neck. Gently, he brushes aside her braids to get a better sniff of the floral scent oozing from her skin. The scent triggers memories of the time the bassist had spent in Mexico, of the last whore he had paid at "The Chicken Choker" in Tijuana, a petite brunette that had smelled almost as sweet as Bedelia.

Remembering all this, Murdoc scooted closer to Bedelia, wrapping one long sinewy arm around her middle, sniffing her skin again and finally running the tip of his tongue slowly up and down her nape and top spine, cherishing her sweat. Then, he slid his tongue along the side of her neck and her jaw and up to her earlobe. Bedelia moaned sleepily when the tip of his tongue flicked the earlobe.

"Morning, luv," he whispered after pulling back his tongue and getting another taste of her sweat.

"Morning, Mr. Niccals," Bedelia answered.

"Aw no... _Mr. Niccals_ was a good-for-nothing boozehound who'd sell my last bit of dignity for a bottle of bottom shelf liquor," the bassist protested, unable to hide a jaded grin, "Call me Mudz."

"Thanks. Friends call me Della." Bedelia smiled again, shifting into a more comfortable position with her bottom pressing against Murdoc's crotch and making the erection come back quickly. The bassist slipped his hand underneath the blanket to investigate her buttocks until his hand found the valley between her thighs. Much to his pleasure, Bedelia drew in her breath sharply when his middle finger slipped into her moist hole and slowly moved to and fro, the long nail grazing her inner flesh and jerking every nerve alive. A moment later, the index finger slipped in as well, the nail grazing her flesh again. Both fingers moved in perfect synchronicity, changing gear every now and then.

Again, it was sweet music to the bassist's ears when she moaned as his fingers moved inside of her. Murdoc quickly snuggled closer against her until his other hand had found her breast and started teasing the nipple with his thumb. He couldn't help grinning when her moaning deepened at once. When she suddenly gave a sound very similar to a cat's purr and his fingers and palm were drenched with her juices, he knew he had pushed the right buttons. He slipped his fingers out of her, flipped her over in a swift movement, knelt down between her legs and bent across her to claim her lips for a kiss. Again, Bedelia responded eagerly to his tongue exploring her mouth and touching the gum where one back tooth had been broken down, leaving just a jagged piece. After a felt eternity, their lips and tongues parted.

"Feeling good, luv?" Murdoc whispered, nudging her nose with his. Then, he put his hands on either side of her hips and slowly bent his spine upwards like a cobra ready to attack, looking her over. He smiled to himself at the sight of her eyes still closed.

"Look at me," he demanded, "Then I know you hear me." Slowly, Bedelia opened her eyes, nodded and ran a hand along the bassist's arm and shoulder, tousling his black hair.

"Feel good," she said, running her hand down his back to give his buttocks a gentle squeeze. Murdoc smiled at her and lowered himself on his elbows for a quick kiss. Straightening up on his hands again, the ghost of a smile touched the corners of his mouth since he couldn't remember when he had felt this good before noon.

Murdoc and Bedelia stayed in bed for a couple of hours, sipping some rum from a left-over bottle and talking. A sharp rapping on the Winnebago's door and 2-D's voice calling out for the bassist stopped them short from sharing another kiss. Murdoc pushed himself off the bed, putting on his jeans and boots and tossing Bedelia's clothes at her before he jerked the door open and glared daggers at the blue-haired vocalist. Carefully, Bedelia crept into the bathroom to get dressed. She didn't understand the words but it made her hold her breath when 2-D's shy voice was interrupted by a low predatory growl that made her arm hair stand on end. She swallowed hard when there was a loud "Thud" outside, followed by an outcry and whimper of pain that was cut off by the door being smashed close. Smoothing her tee shirt and dress, Bedelia took a deep breath when she heard Murdoc approaching the bathroom door, opening it to poke his head in.

"What was that about?" she asked.

"Faceache just said lunch is on." Murdoc opened the door further and stepped in to hug her.

"I better go when you're busy," Bedelia mumbled against the hair on his chest. The bassist cupped her chin and raised it to look into her eyes.

"No need to, Della," he said, his raspy voice carrying an eerie calmness Bedelia couldn't help to find very interesting, "I expect to find you here when I'm back. Won't be long. Make yourself at home, luv. I'll bring some food for you."

"Okay, Mudz. Thanks." Bedelia closed her eyes, snuggling her face against Murdoc's chest. Again, there was a rapping sound, this time against one of the bath room window frames, followed by a cawing. Murdoc raised his head to check and smiled broadly when he noticed the shape of his raven friend Cortez perching on the window-sill. He let go of Bedelia to open the window. Cortez stepped in, suspiciously looking Bedelia over who bowed her head to greet the bird. Cortez came to perch on Murdoc's shoulder, nudging his ear and uttering a low, long cawing as if to ask, "Who entered my domain?" Murdoc introduced his feathered friend to Bedelia and vice versa. Much to the bassist's surprise, Cortez flew onto Bedelia's lower arm when she extended it. Again, a low cawing escaped his beak.

"Hello, Cortez," Bedelia said, again bowing her head at the bird, "My pleasure." Another cawing was heard while Cortez eyed Bedelia again. The woman held his gaze, suddenly remembering her favourite line from Edgar Allen Poe's poem "The raven". The line went, "And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon that is dreaming." And being confronted with the bright red eyes of the bird perching on her wrist now and feeling his talons pierce her skin, it suddenly began to dawn to her what Poe might have seen or imagined when writing these words.

Cortez eyed her once again and quickly spread his wings as if shrugging. Bedelia lowered her gaze. Looking into the raven's bright red eyes made her shiver inwardly as if the bird knew exactly what she was thinking of. For a moment, the thought crossed her mind that Poe's poem might have been about Cortez. The raven cawed lowly and spread his wings again as if to say, "I know, I know. Stranger things have happened, dear." After a few minutes of smoothing his glossy black coat, he cawed once more, turning his head towards Murdoc and spreading his wings to full size. Immediately, the bassist left the bathroom for the kitchen. Bedelia heard him rummaging the cabinets before he returned with a medium-sized plastic box. Bedelia watched him lift off the lid, revealing eyeballs of different kind and sizes. Carefully, the bassist took a switchblade and a small black plastic pick shaped like a sword from his front pockets. He opened the switchblade with a swift movement and speared one of the eyeballs. It was a cat's eye that was almost as green as his skin. He offered the eyeball to Cortez who snatched it off the blade and quickly tilted his head back to swallow. Contently, Murdoc nodded to himself, closing the switchblade, putting it back into his pocket and putting the box on a glass shelf next to the tub. On top he placed the sword-shaped pick. Then, he took Bedelia's hand, gently rubbing the knuckles with his thumb.

"Must fly now, luv," he said.

"I'll be waiting," Bedelia promised, smiling at him.

"I leave Cortez for company," Murdoc said, looking at the raven who just spread his wings a bit as if shrugging again.

"Thank you. But why?"

"Mind you, he came to you all by himself," Murdoc stated proudly, "And his snack box din't make you flinch. Back in the slammer, I have seen more than one hard-boiled bloke scream his head off when he saw Cortez having a snack from a corpse in the Mexican sun. But you didn't even blink. That's why I want you to be here when I'm coming back. I never met a girl like you before, Della."

"I never met a man like you, either, Mudz," Bedelia replied, placing a gentle kiss on his chest, right below his heart. Then, she freed herself from Murdoc's arms, stepping back a little to sit down on the edge of the bath tub since she didn't want to delay him any further. As if on cue, Cortez flew to perch on the tub's edge next to her, cawing quietly.

"Mind if I give him a snack, too?" Bedelia asked, "He looks as if he could do with another bite."

"Be my guest," Murdoc invited. He leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms over his chest, watching her pick up the sword pick, open the box again and spear a yellowish goat's eye. Cortez watched her offering him the eyeball with his head cocked aside. This time, he took his treat gingerly from the pick. When he had swallowed, he cawed again.

"Welcome. Just let me know when you want more." Bedelia smiled. When she turned around to say good-bye to Murdoc, the green-skinned man was gone. Considering the hard-soled boots he wore, she was surprised that she didn't hear him leave.

Slowly, Bedelia wandered through the dimly lit Winnebago, looking at the things Murdoc had collected over the years. Cortez followed her, perching on a scythe standing in a corner when she stopped to take a closer look at something. Mostly there were occult things like pentagrams and inverted crosses of different sizes. She froze to the spot when she noticed two very old looking books sitting all alone on a single shelf. Small cracks and wrinkles ran across the smaller book's leathery cover that read "Al-Azif" in faded Arabian letters. The other book was clad in smooth black leather looking less battered. Surprisingly, its front read "Holy Bible" in bold golden letters, written across a curvy symbol roughly resembling a richly decorated blossom.

Bedelia blinked in surprise when she remembered having read or heard the name "Al-Azif" once before. Yet, she couldn't place it. Questioningly, she looked at Cortez who had sat down on the back of a seat near her. The raven shrugged again, cawing lowly and shifting his feet.

"Care for a snack, Cortez?" Bedelia asked. When the raven flew to perch on the back of the next seat and gave another caw, she went to get the box and the sword-shaped plastic pick.

"Here you are," she said, sitting down in the seat and spearing a fresh eyeball – the second cat's eye – for the raven. Cortez leaned forward to take his snack. As soon as he had swallowed, he flew towards the window, tapping the frame. Bedelia followed him to open the window and say, "Have a good time." Cortez didn't hesitate to move onto the outside window-sill. But instead of leaving, he sat a few minutes ruffling his jet-black feathers as if to consider what things to do and what places to go.

When the raven had left, Bedelia put the box into the small fridge in the kitchen since she assumed the eyeballs required chilled storage. Then, she discarded her dress, the tee shirt and the bra and panties to creep into the bed and get some more rest. The pillow still held the bassist's scent, an animalic mixture of sour sweat and old smoke with a dash of stale breath. She sighed, burying her nose into the smooth cloth. When she had dozed off, Murdoc opened the door, leaned his back against the door frame and peeked into the room. It took him a few minutes to discover her dark red bra and the same-colour panties on the floor and her body form underneath the blanket. The sight made him chuckle to himself while pushing the door shut, putting a pizza box and a fresh bottle of black rum onto the next shelf, unbottening his black shirt, stepping out off his battered boots and taking off his faded black jeans before kneeling down at the foot of bed. He let his eyes crawl over Bedelia's body form before lifting the blanket, slipping underneath and slowly running his hands up her stockinged leg to become noticable. Bedelia stirred as soon as his fingers had reached her knee. She moaned quietly when he rolled her on her back and opened her legs, deeply inhaling the scent from between her thighs. Bending across her unshaven crotch, he let his tongue explore her hole, parting her thick pubic hair. Bedelia stirred again, moaning throatily. Murdoc put one of her legs on his shoulder and bent down to run his tongue through her vagina from her hole to her clit in one swift movement. This time, her moaning became so deep that the bassist could rather feel than hear it – very much like the bass key from a synthesizer. It made him smile to himself before flicking her clit with the tip of his tongue. Immediately, the deep-throated moaning was replaced by a high-pitched sound resembling the hissing shriek of a cat in heat. Murdoc planted a soft kiss on the tip of her crotch, took her leg off his shoulder, running his fingers along her garter-straps and crept upwards on his hands and knees to meet her lips.

"Well, hello there," he whispered when his head had found the pillow.

"Fancy meeting you here," Bedelia replied before he claimed her lips for a deep kiss, his tongue slighty grazing her gums where the back tooth was missing. Simultanously, the tip of his rod poked her moist hole, making her shift and open her legs further. Slowly, he pushed himself into the ring of muscle, pausing every now and then this time to let her adjust to his size while moving his lips over her neck and throat, kissing and licking the soft, sweet-scented skin. When he had pushed himself in as far as possible, his lips went along her collar bone, sucking the skin and leaving tiny love bites.

"Feeling good, luv?" he asked when he had climaxed and slipped out of her, slowly rolling on his back.

"Feeling hungry," Bedelia clarified. This made Murdoc sit up and roll onto his belly in a swift movement, standing up on his knees.

"Almost forgot – I brought pizza." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, pointing to where he had put the box and the bottle. Bedelia watched him make his way over and get both. She opened the hook and eye of her broad garter belt and released the stockings, taking the garter belt off and dropping it on the floor. The stockings followed suit. Then, she sat up, adjusting the pillows to lean against.

Bedelia smiled at the naked bassist taking a bow and handing her the box. Then, he put the bottle on the shelf with an attached drawer making his nightstand. Bedelia opened the box to see a quarter pizza, sliced in two pieces loaded with ham, salami, bacon bits and extra cheese.

"Yummy," she said, taking one of the pieces and starting to eat. Of course, the pizza had cooled off but was far from being nastily cold. When the bassist had slipped next to her underneath the blanket, she put the box onto his lap so he could have a bite too.

"Nah, thanks. I had my share. That's just for you, luv." The bassist waved a dismissive hand, handed her the box and bent across her for a quick kiss on her cheek.

"You know, you're awesome, Mudz," Bedelia said between two bites. The bassist smiled knowingly, put his arm around her shoulder and replied, "And you're amazing, luv. Did you like my wake-up call?"

"Sure I did. It was fantastic," Bedelia smiled, kissing his cheek, "I don't know about you but I feel like having a smoke." She handed him the pizza box being empty except for the pizza crusts now and got up to get her handbag.

"Want one?" she asked, putting one of her black cigarettes on the corner of her mouth. Chuckling to himself, Murdoc put the pizza box aside and brushed his fringe from his eyes to shoot her a look. His reddish eye was twinkling excitedly.

"Thought you'd never ask," he said, rummaging his make-shift nightstand for a lighter and a small metal ashtray. He lit Bedelia's cigarette and watched her inhale deeply and exhale the smoke through her nostrils. A thin trail of smoke, resembling a toy train's smoke, escaped her lips when she smiled at him and tapped his chin with a fresh cigarette. When the cigarette was sitting between his lips and the tip was lit, the bassist inhaled deep enough to smoke the cigarette halfways down to the filter in one breath. He blew a couple of smoke rings into the air before he rested the cigarette in the ashtray and climbed out of the bed to make himself comfortable on top of the blanket, putting his head on Bedelia's lap and giving a long and very satisfied sigh. He straightened up again, placing the ashtray and the bottle within reach.

"Feel good?" Bedelia asked, running her fingers through his hair and along his sideburns.

"Feel great," Murdoc said, being in fact miserably happy. "What can I say – if anybody told me that having a girl around me for more than just a frantic tumble would feel so good, I'd have declared him as mad as a hatter. I'm glad we met." He took another draw at his cigarette and exhaled smoke through tiny gaps among his teeth reminding Bedelia of a sleeping dragon.

"Glad to hear that." Bedelia smiled at him, ruffling his chest hair. Her smile widened when he gave a pleasurable hum in respond and tipped off ash from his cigarette.

"I'm not really a fan of being dead honest with the birds," Murdoc confessed, "But since a dirty-sweet girl like you deserves better, I hafta admit I'd be gutted if we'd not meet again."

"I'd be very glad to meet you again, too. And Cortez, of course," Bedelia replied, the ghost of a smile touching the corners of her mouth.

"Me too," Murdoc said, smiling back at her.

"By the way, where do you get his food?" Bedelia wondered, "Never seen eyeballs for sale."

"You hear a things or two when you get around," was all Murdoc would say, smoking his cigarette down to the filter in a another breath and stubbing it in the ashtray.

Some time passed until Murdoc felt thirsty. Yet, he didn't feel like loosing his comfortable position. Bedelia noticed him glancing at the bottle. Following an inspiration, she took and unscrewed it.

"Open up!" she said. When Murdoc had opened his mouth, watching her every move, she carefully lowered and tilted the bottle, pouring a narrow streak of golden-brown rum into his mouth and down his throat. The bassist raised his index finger in a sharp "quit it"-motion when he had swallowed a third of the bottle. Bedelia took a sip herself before putting back the bottle.

"Thanks, luv. That was a real nice way to have a drink," he said, licking his lips and smiling at her. Slowly, his hand crawled up her front to caress her cheeks.

"Welcome. Always wanted to try this. Glad you like it." Bedelia took hold of his wrist and quickly planted a kiss on each knuckle when he had run the nail of his index finger along her throat and chin, sending a shiver down her spine. Then, he closed his eyes halfways and took a deep breath as if to doze off. Bedelia slouched further into the pillow, leaning her head against the wall and closing her eyes as well until she felt a light tapping against her thigh. She opened her eyes and found herself being watched by Murdoc once again. One of his hands rested on her thigh, losely curled into a palm-up fist. The bassist cleared his throat to ask, "Say, where do you come from, luv?"

"I was born in Maine – one of the states touched by the Canadian winter –, and raised by my grandmother and her second husband in a small town in West Virginia – a bit more to the South but still used to snowy winters," Bedelia answered, slightly confused, "Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," the bassist answered casually, running the back of his losely curled-up hand along her thigh, "It just stroke me that I don't know much about you – except that I feel good having you around. You're the most interesting girl I ever met. And I'm pretty amazed about Cortez coming to you all by himself. That's why I rank you pretty high among my Top Ten of the birds I met along the way."

"Anything else you wanna know?" Bedelia smiled, her index finger tracing a circle on his palm.

"Let's start with the name of the town you were born in." The bassist gently closed his fingers around hers.

"I was born on Little Tall Island," Bedelia said.

" _On_ Little Tall Island?" the bassist wondered.

"Little Tall Island lies in front of Maine's coast – a small heap of rock and earth holding a restaurant, a church, small grocery and household shops, a beauty parlor, a post office, a police station and a fish market where the docks used to be until they were destroyed by a real nasty storm. Up in the North were the rich people's houses. You could call it a city surrounded by water. One of these places where you can't sneeze without the neighbour offering you a hanky or wiping your nose."

"Ew... Sounds pretty dull..." Murdoc said.

"Well, mostly it was. But if you kept an open ear, the strangest stories could be heard, most of them containing people getting lost in nasty weather and such. I revisited Little Tall – as it's called by the people who live there – in my teens, just to see if anything had changed – which hadn't. I remember old lady St. George inviting me for tea, telling me about some events from Little Tall and some from across the water people keep telling secretly – like a small town where people are said to be seen only in full moon nights and travellers are said to disappear by the dozen. Vampires are said to rule this town, along with the ghosts of a preacher and his followers. She also told me about creatures from another dimension, trying to break through."

"What creatures?" Murdoc interrupted, a gleam of interest being set into his eyes.

"Old lady St. George called them _The Ancient Ones_. She said that there's a barriere between their dimension and ours wearing thin here and there – like the leather of a ball. And when it's wearing thin enough, the creatures break through – causing people who happen to witness this to lose their way forever. Some of them are said to be found scared into having lost their mind completely. Old lady St. George told me about a young couple passing through one town on a rather mild winter's day – a rare thing in that part of Maine. Two days later or so the woman was found all alone in the woods near the town with her hair having turned all white. She was shaking like leaves and talking to herself about the piper of the stars and the goat with a thousand young – over and over again."

"Sounds like you've had your share of strange things," Murdoc interrupted, "You weren't born in a proper hospital, per chance, were you?"

"No, Mom had found a job and room as a maid in a rich woman's house, and the next proper hospital was across the water. So, I was born in that room where Mom was currently staying. Most of the neighbours were there to help her until the local doctor would come. Just like I said, a place where you couldn't sneeze without a neighbour wiping your nose. Crozet, the Virginian town where I was moved to by my grandmother and her second husband when I turned six, was just the same, only with lots of juicy gossip instead of the weird tales." Bedelia shrugged, a little smile sitting on her face. But as surprised as she was about the bassist's question, she didn't think of returning it. Murdoc smiled back at her while thinking the new information over. Somewhere deep inside his head, Bedelia's words had rung a distant bell. Yet, he couldn't quite put a finger on it. After a few minutes, he dismissed it and snuggled his head closer into her lap, catching a fresh sniff from between her thighs.

"By the way, I've seen your books on the shelf over there," Bedelia continued.

"You read them?" Murdoc wondered.

"Nope, I didn't want to damage them as old as they look."

"Just souvenirs I picked up ages ago," the bassist explained, "Have a look if you like."

"I didn't expect you to have a bible," Bedelia said, "Not with all the rumours about you."

"What rumours? I told you I made some friends in low places, remember? And I guess you can tell what's with my cross, too," Murdoc huffed, baring his teeth for a moment, "Besides, this ain't no ordinary bible but the Bible of Hell."

"The Bible of Hell?"

"Did you think just... the other place... has its history about mankind? Mind you, the Old Fella had his fingers in creation, too. Actually, he still has sometimes." Again, he shot Bedelia a look from underneath his fringe, making her bite her lower lip before she dared to ask about the other book.

"That's for summoning demons," the bassist explained in a voice that obviously meant business, "They call it _The Necronomicon_. And somehow I guess you heard about that one, too, luv." A faint smile crept into the bassist's face.

"Old lady St. George mentioned it. She mispronounced the name twice as if being scared shitless," Bedelia answered.

Murdoc took another deep breath, closing his eyes. Bedelia ran a hand across his upper body, causing another smile to spread on his face. He reached out to get hold of her hand, wrapping his fingers around it and running his thumb across the knuckles. Taking another deep breath and snuggling his nose into her crotch, he fell asleep. Considering this a good idea, Bedelia leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes. When the pair woke up again, another day had dawned.

Murdoc sat up to lean against the pillow as well. He put his arm around Bedelia's shoulder and kissed her temple.

"You're really amazing," he said while running his hand down her front, "I think I really could get used to having you around." He fell silent for a moment before tapping the tip of his nose, getting up and tossing Bedelia's clothes at her. Then, he searched for jeans, shirt and boots.

"What is it?" Bedelia wondered when he was dressed.

"I want you to meet my band, Della," Murdoc explained, leaning against the door and holding his hand out at her, "Guess it can't be wrong to show them I'm not in here so long with the nastiest hangover or something. Come here, luv." Bedelia smoothed and adjusted her dress and the tee shirt, straightened up her stockings and slipped her shoes on before she got up and came to Murdoc. The bassist pulled her into a hug before taking her hand to lead her across the carpark. Bedelia gasped when she noticed movements between the cars.

"That's just the zombies from the old graveyard round the corner. They drop in every now and then. No need to be scared. You're safe with me around," she heard Murdoc whisper into her ear before reaching out over her shoulder and pushing the elevator's button with his extended knuckle. Feeling his hot breath touch her ear made her smile. She leaned against him, taking a quite shaky breath. A few minutes later, the metal doors slid open with an odd scrap and rattle. Murdoc lead Bedelia in, pushed the UP button and gave her a tight hug from behind before rubbing her shoulders and kissing her nape. The elevator's door rattled open again to reveal the curious face of singer 2-D with Japanese guitarrist Noodle standing in front of him and black drummer Russel towering above. When Murdoc and Bedelia stepped out of the elevator, the Japanese girl rushed forward with an outcry of joy.

"Murdoc-san!" she cheered, throwing her arms around the bassist, almost pushing him back into the elevator. Then, she noticed Bedelia.

"Who this, Murdoc-san?" she asked, "Friend?"

"Friend," Murdoc confirmed, flashing a little smile at the guitarrist and a bigger one at Bedelia.

When Noodle was obviously done greeting the bassist, Murdoc introduced the band members to Bedelia, gesturing at each one. The following silence made 2-D square his bony shoulders to add his two cents, "Haven't seen you in yonks, Mudz."

"Too bad I din't drop dead, eh?" the bassist chuckled, taking Bedelia's hand again and running his thumb across the back.

"Christ, no," 2-D said quickly. He blinked before asking, "And who's your friend?"

"Her name's Bedelia. We met in a bar after the last concert," Murdoc said. No band member dared to comment this. Russel crossed his arms over his broad chest while Noodle looked at her shoes before tucking at the hem of 2-D's shirt and looking at him questioningly. The vocalist shrugged.

All of a sudden, a deep rumble was heard when Russel cleared his throat and asked if anyone was hungry. Giving a deep sigh of relief, 2-D gestured invitingly towards the kitchen. The band walked into the kitchen, sitting down at the already set table. A big sauce pan was sitting on the stove, filling the room with the mouth-watering scent of fried ham and bacon with white beans in a rich tomatoe sauce. As soon as everyone had found a seat, Russel filled a scoopful into each of the bowls on the table. He opened a cabinet to get another bowl, cup and a fresh spoon. Having filled the new bowl as well, he offered it to Bedelia who took it, bowing her head slightly at the drummer.

When all bowls were served, Murdoc, Noodle, Russel and Bedelia started eating. 2-D, however, kept looking into his bowl as if searching for something. After a few minutes, he pushed his bowl aside and hauled his lanky body off his chair to pour himself a cup of coffee instead. Having returned to his seat, he slowly sipped the coffee. When he noticed Bedelia's confused glance, he tapped his chest and explained, "Veggie.", smiling sheepishly.

When his bowl was empty, Murdoc stiffled a belch and ran a hand over Bedelia's shoulder, gently squeezing it.

"I go back for some rest," he whispered into her ear, "I'll leave the door unlocked for you. I have something really nice in mind for us."

"I'm coming when I'm done," Bedelia replied, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear.

"See you then," the bassist whispered back and pecked her cheek. Silence crept into the room until the steps of his hard-soled Cuban heels had echoed out in the hall.

"Well, Bedelia, you really have been with Mudz since our last concert? That was 2 weeks ago. Is he... err, good to you?" 2-D asked after the last sip of his coffee. A hint of concern crept across his face, making his big black eyes shine. Bedelia blinked at his thick Cockney accent her brain refused to translate at first.

"Yeah, he is," she answered when she had made out his words, flasing him a smile, "Mudz is a very special guy." 2-D and Russel exchanged glances before both gave a nod and shrug.

"He's one of a kind," Russel added. 2-D nodded his agreements while Noodle just smiled to herself, finishing her bowl. Then, she propped herself up on her elbows, resting her chin on her hands and watching Bedelia finish her own bowl and say, "Hmmm, yummy."

"Yum-my," the Japanese girl parotted instantly. Then, she repeated it over and over until Russel made her stop.

"Okay, I'm going now," Bedelia said, getting up.

"Bye, Be-de-lia-san," Noodle said, extending a delicate hand.

"Bye, Noodle," Bedelia replied, gently shaking the girl's hand, "Bye, guys." She shook Russel's and 2-D's hands as well before turning to leave. Instantly, 2-D got up to accompany her. They crossed the car park in complete silence until they reached the Winnebago's steps.

"Bye, Bedelia. It was nice meeting you," the vocalist said before Bedelia climbed up the steps.

"Likewise, 2-D," Bedelia replied, flashing him a final smile and shaking hands with him. She turned to look at the door, drumming her fingers against the frame and calling out for the bassist. It took a few minutes until the raspy voice called her in. The door inched open when she gave it a light push with her heel of hand.

When her eyes had adjusted to the dim light inside, Bedelia was surprised to find the bed empty. She called again. Once again, it took a few minutes until the bassist answered, "In here!" She followed the voice into the bath room that was lit by nothing but about a dozen dark blue candles sitting all over the room. The beautiful sight of the tiny flames made Bedelia sigh.

Murdoc had made himself comfortable in the tub filled with foamed water. The inverted golden cross was floating on the water and twinkling in the candle light. Alas, the tub was a bit too short to accommodate the bassist's body. Thus, he had propped up his heels onto the rim, leaving his lower belly and his crotch the only part hidden by the foam. Bedelia sat down onto the rim, letting her eyes crawl up and down his long slender legs since it was the first time she got a better peek at his lower extremities. She was a bit surprised to see that his nails were trimmed, making his hands and feet look less predatory.

"Well, hello there, my lovely," Murdoc said, sipping a greenish liquid on ice from a footed rocks glass sitting in his right hand. Without putting the glass aside, he shifted into a better position to straight up and kiss her. Bedelia frowned slightly since she couldn't place the strong bitter-sweet taste.

"Feeling cozy?" she then asked. The bassist nodded and reclined again, making the ice cubes in the glass clink and thin down the drink.

"Why don't you join me, luv?" he offered, taking another sip.

"Not enough room, as far as I can see." Bedelia rubbed the back of his right foot and ran her fingers through the stubby hair covering his shin.

"That's a crying shame," the bassist said, "Always wanted to share a bath with a woman." Bedelia smiled, moving closer to plant a soft kiss onto his temple.

"Poor Mudz," she whispered.

"No harm done," the bassist chuckled to himself, "There'll be another chance if the Old Fella wills it."

"Fairly spoken. But I'll wash your back if you like," Bedelia offered. Murdoc considered this and nodded. Bedelia sat down on the rim at the head of the tub and rolled up her sleeves. Putting the glass on a shelf within reach, the bassist pulled his legs closer against his torso, wrapping his arms around the knees, closing his eyes and giving a sigh when he felt water run down his spine. The water was followed by Bedelia's hand rubbing his back in small circles. A sigh of pleasure escaped the bassist.

"May I ask you something?" Bedelia asked when her hand brushed the small of his back and went up again. The bassist gave a shrug and nod.

"Go ahead, luv."

"You said that Mr Niccals – being your father, I guess – would sell your dignity for booze – the cheapest stuff, if I got it right. What did that mean?" Murdoc bit his lip for a moment before he said in a low voice, "Well... you see... when I was a child, the local pub held a talent show every now and then, and my old man made sure I was in it to win him drinking money."

"Ewww," Bedelia sighed while her hand washed his top spine. Murdoc leaned into the touch, cherishing it to the full.

"Precisely," he then said, "Jacob Sebastian Niccals – or Sebastian Jacob Niccals, depending on who was asking – had just two ways of treating me. First one was beating my brains out with his walking cane when he was out of his mind, and second one was forcing me to do these song-and-dance-performances in the pub. And if my old man was too drunk to beat the living shit out of me – happening once in a blue moon if I was lucky –, my brother was more than happy to help out."

"Your father really had a walking cane?" Bedelia was astonished.

"Uh-hu. A shiny black one with a silver wolf's head on top. As a child, I always thought it would bite me if he'd let go of it. I guess the cane was his most prized posession, even if the head was made of tin or something. I can't remember having seen him leave home without that thing. I mean, he din't really need it – my old man was a lazy bag of bones who'd rather die than seek work but he was fast as lightning if he wanted to. I think he wore the cane just for his outfit. He always was dressed in a really fancy black suit with a blue scarf around his neck and a top hat. I've never seen a shirt on him but sometimes he'd wear matching gloves with the suit. In fact, he looked like a dandy from 19th century or so. If it hadn't been for his three-inch-long nose, he'd have made a quite handsome appearance, I hafta admit." A faint smile crept across Murdoc's face at the recollection.

"Did I get this right? You were beaten by your brother and your father?" Bedelia asked after a few minutes of rubbing his shoulder-blades.

"Yup. Hannibal loved to beat me black and blue without cause, especially when he was fuming about something – which was the only mood I saw on him. He broke my nose twice when I dared to take a closer look at his precious records, picking one to play it."

"Dreadful..." Bedelia couldn't help shivering. Murdoc turned around halfways and soothingly ran his knuckles along her cheek before asking, "Do you know the tales parents tell their children to scare them into being good?"

"You mean things like _If you don't behave yourself, the Boogeyman's gonna eat you_?"

"Precisely. But in the area of Stoke – the town I din't choose to be born and raised at – parents would say _Hannibal Niccals is gonna eat you._ "

"Sounds like messing with him was like messing with a walking chainsaw," Bedelia said thoughtfully.

"And that's putting it mildly, luv," the bassist agreed. Bedelia fell silent for a moment before wondering, "Where's Stoke?"

"In England, somewhere between Manchester and Birmingham. The town's full name is Stoke-on-Trent. People call it _The Potteries_ because most of England's tableware is produced there. The town is famous for that – aside from being the home town of GUNS'N'ROSES guitarist Slash and MOTÖRHEAD's bass man and singer Lemmy," Murdoc explained. Bedelia fell silent for another moment before asking, "What did your mother do about you being beaten so much?"

"My mother?" Murdoc said, giving a shrug, "I never met her. All I know is that I was born in the local mental asylum. I guess she was an inmate, most likely raped by my father. After I was born, somebody dumped me on his door step."

"Mhhhm..." Bedelia's hand came to a sudden halt between Murdoc's shoulder-blades. Her middle finger tapped his skin thoughtfully.

"What?" Murdoc wondered, turning his head to face her.

"That's one thing we have in common – we're accidents, so to speak," she stated, "My parents met while Dad was together with somebody else. But one thing lead to the other, and boom! – into this world I'm thrown." Unable to hide a smile, Murdoc ran his index finger along her nose, gently poking the tip with his knuckle and whispering, "You're a really smart one. Say, did you just quote a song to me?"

"Sort of. I ad-libbed a line from The Doors' _Riders on the storm_."

"The Doors..." Murdoc said thoughtfully, "Not my kind of music exactly but great tunes for smoking pot." Bedelia smiled, pouring another handful of water over his back and rubbing his back. The bassist put his hand around her nape to pull her closer and kiss her. When releasing her, he accidently ran his nails across the side of her neck, making her laugh quietly. He pulled back, shooting her a look before flashing her a tooth-ridden grin.

"Pour me nuther drink, luv," he said, handing her the glass, "Bottle's in the kitchen."

"Coming right over." Bedelia went to look for an opened bottle. She nodded to herself when she found a bottle with the lable reading "Absinthe Bizarre" in the fridge. She filled the glass halfway. When Murdoc had gulped down the second glass in one, he pushed himself out of the tub and reached out for a towel.

"I feel like getting dirty again," he said wiping himself off, "Wanna join me?"

"Make a guess." Bedelia gave him a suggestively smile, cupping her bosom. Without another word, she went into the bedroom, undressed and crept underneath the covers. Letting out a snicker, Murdoc leaned against the door frame of his bedroom and looked at her body form underneath the blanket before he approached the foot of the bed, lifting the covers and working his way over her legs and hips with his hands and tongue.

It was the fourth morning after Murdoc had taken his occasional bath. The bassist woke up to the rhythm of rain drops drumming on the Winnebago's roof and splashing against the windows as if sand was thrown against the motor-home by the handful, mixed up with a couple of quick breathings that sounded rather odd. He rolled over and propped himself up on his elbow to face Bedelia. A gasp escaped him when he noticed the colour of her face having changed from light brown to the unhealthiest yellow. He sat up and took her hand, protectively wrapping his calloused fingers around it. Bedelia responded by giving a long sigh. Her eyes opened slowly, giving the vacant look Murdoc had seen more than once in 2-D's face after a recent painkillers pop.

Murdoc felt concern and an icy dash of desperation wrap around his heart like a clammy hand when two tears rolled down her cheeks. Something was terribly wrong with his dirty-sweet girl, and all he knew was that he had to do something. But the hospital was far away, and no matter how hard he was racking his brain, he couldn't think of anything useful aside from holding her hand. Then, it hit him like a slap across the face. He put Bedelia's hand on top of her belly, gently patting the back, caressed her cheeks, shoulders and arms, wiped off the trails of her tears with the knuckle of his pinkie and went to kneel down on the threadbare carpet. He took a piece of chalk from a shelf within reach to draw a medium-sized pentagram. Then, he got up quickly to fetch a screw top jar from his fridge containing a dark red liquid – weeks ago, he had drained blood from a young stray cat Cortez had caught. When the raven had feasted on the black cat's golden eyes, he had dropped the carcass on the Winnebago's steps like a sacrifice. Murdoc had slit the cat's throat and poured the blood into the jar, just in case it might be of use later. Now, he unscrewed the jar, placing it in the middle of the pentagram. When everything was set, the bassist put his hands on his thighs and started mumbling an incantation he hadn't used for months. After a while the air in the Winnebago was thickening, like the air on the eve of a thunderstorm. Then, all of a sudden, a shock wave raced through the Winnebago, shaking the motor-home violently and catapulting the bassist against the nearest wall, almost forcing him through. Simultanously, the blood inside the unscrewed jar began to boil. Steam began to rise when Murdoc slid down the wall, slouching on the floor like a ragdoll that had lost its stuffing. After a few minutes, the steam cloud turned into a tall and slim man wearing a white suit with a black vest covering a shirtless upper body. The narrow head was clean-shaven except for a pair of slim eyebrows of indifferent colour. A pair of huge eyes looked around like search headlights, twinkling like diamonds in the sun.

Lucifer who had stooped to following Murdoc's invitation sauntered over to the bassist, the unscrewed jar sitting in his long elegant fingers like a fancy cocktail. He took another sip from the jar, put it onto the next shelf and grabbed Murdoc's arms to yank him to his feet.

"Hey, Lu!" Murdoc said, managing a weak smile, "Long time no see."

"Murdoc Niccals, as I live and breathe!" Lucifer answered, giving Murdoc's shoulder a painful squeeze, "I told you we'd meet again. Thanks for the welcome drink. Young cat's blood, not much more than a kitten, I guess?"

"Sure. Just the best for old pals, Lu." Murdoc's smile widened a bit as his confidence grew.

"Thanks alot anyway," the fallen angel said, "How's your little _jailbird with the chilling reputation_?"

"He's out and about somwhere. Having fun, I guess," the bassist said, "And how's your kin?"

"Busy as always, thanks for asking. You look pretty good," Lucifer smirked, "For roadkill." The fallen angel nearly doubled over at his own joke before he tapped Murdoc's breast bone with the knuckle of his middle finger.

"Now, why don't we come to the point?" he snickered, picking up the jar for another long gulp, "I guess you didn't call me in for a tea party."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Lu. I need your help," Murdoc explained.

"What is it this time?" Lucifer rolled his eyes, drinking up and putting the jar aside. Then, he pulled a black piece of cloth from his sleeve to dap his mouth.

"My girl... she's not well..." Murdoc was shushed by Lucifer's index finger tapping the bassist's crooked nose three times.

"What do I look like to you, a doctor?" the fallen angel asked, sounding highly amused. Nonetheless, he shoved the piece of cloth back up his sleeve and turned towards the bed, bending across Bedelia to touch her face and throat. Shaking his head, he plopped down on the edge of the bed.

"What's wrong with her?" Murdoc picked himself up again, coming closer.

"Can't say... Her puls is most unsteady. As fast as a marathon runner's puls in one minute and slower than a zombie's puls in the other. Never seen this before." Lucifer shrugged.

"Is there anything you can do?" Murdoc's voice nearly cracked. Calm and serene, Lucifer started searching his pockets. Finally, he pulled a midget long-necked booze bottle from the inside pocket of his jacket. The bottle contained a clear fluid with a few dark red spots dancing and whirling around.

"Maybe this will do the trick," Lucifer said gravely. When Murdoc reached out for the bottle, the fallen angel quickly pulled it away, wrapping his fingers around it.

"Why, Mr. Niccals! Did you really think it's so easy?" he smirked, shaking his head.

"Course not," Murdoc said, his heart and head hanging low. Lucifer's hand cupped his chin and raised it.

"There, there," the fallen angel said in an almost fatherly voice, "You asked for help, and I didn't say I won't help. But you know how it works. I never give anything away. What I do is bargain, trade. Remember?"

"How could I forget, Lu. So, what's the price this time?" the bassist managed to ask.

"Well..." Lucifer's eyes crept back to Bedelia's face, studying it carefully. He leaned in close enough to run the tip of his nose along her hairline and her lips. He inhaled deeply and smacked his lips before he said, "What a catch. So much different from your usual pick. She's got the scent of an almost fresh soul on her." The fallen angel ran a black tongue over his lips.

"Forget it, Lu!" Murdoc hissed through clenched teeth, squaring his shoulders. Lucifer rolled his eyes as if thinking hard.

"Oh, well... if this is your last word, Murdoc Niccals... I want you to kiss me, and you better make it a real good one!" Chuckling, the fallen angel grabbed Murdoc's wrist, making the bassist sit down next to him. Murdoc could just take a deep breath and lick his thin lips having grown dry all of a sudden before Lucifer cupped the bassist's face, greedily claiming his lips. Murdoc couldn't help shivering when Lucifer's hands made their way down his bare back to his hips and thighs as a strong tongue pushed its way into his mouth, forcefully exploring every spot and wriggling around like an eel. The bassist's own tongue responded to the intruder as if having a mind of its own. His heart began to pound faster, making his blood throb all over when Lucifer's fingers brushed along his knees, making the bassist's legs twitch nervously. After a felt eternity, Lucifer pulled back and dangled the bottle in front of Murdoc's eyes, a lecherous grin spreading on his face.

"Shake well until the fluid turns light red and feed her one spoonful in the morning and three spoonful in the evening. But you better not give her a drop on an empty stomach," he advised.

"What is this?" the bassist asked, taking the bottle.

"My favourite medicine against exorcism. A televangelist's sweat with a few drops of blood from a used-car dealer's heart and a dash of fruit juice for taste," Lucifer explained delightful before he sashayed back onto the pentagram and clapped his hands, disappearing into a whisp of sulphurish smoke. Simultanously, the pentagram vanished into thin air. Murdoc fell back onto his bed, giving an exhausted sigh. He still could feel Lucifer's fingers scribbling all over his knees just like the fallen angel's tongue moving around in his mouth and exploring it from the teeth to the bend of the throat, making him feel like being raped, and somehow Murdoc was certain that Lucifer was still laughing. Carefully, he placed the small bottle on his nightstand and made himself comfortable next to Bedelia who still hadn't moved except for having closed her eyes. For a moment, the bassist wondered if she had noticed any of the events. But her steady breathing assured him she hadn't. He scooted closer, wrapping his arm around her middle and pecking her shoulder.

Bedelia took a deep breath, rolling over and facing the bassist. Murdoc couldn't help smiling when he felt her warm breath touch his breastbone, sending a shiver up his spine. He pulled her tighter to him, resting his chin against her forehead.

"My dirty-sweet girl." He gave a deep sigh, feeling better with every heartbeat. Being slapped against the wall by the bone-crushing shock wave didn't matter anymore, just like Lucifer's teasing fingers and forceful kiss. Murdoc ran his hand down Bedelia's bare back while drifting off to sleep.

It was four minutes past midnight when Murdoc got the munchies. He slowly took his arms off Bedelia, trying not to wake her up, and got up to rummage the kitchen cabinets. In the second one he found a bag of roasted and salted pastichios. He sat down at the small table where he kept his barely used laptop and his even lesser used TV, pushed the computer aside and ripped the bag open. He cracked the first pastichio's shell using his long thumb nails and popped the nut into his mouth. A rapping sound interrupted the bassist's snack. He got up and opened the door. Cortez stepped in, his feathers lubricated with rain. The bird flapped his wings, spreading some drops of water, and went straight to perch on the back of Murdoc's chair, looking at the open bag of pastichios. Murdoc picked a fresh one that turned out to have a sealed shell and held it out to Cortez. The raven snatched it from the bassist's palm and quickly tilted his head back to swallow. Then, he watched Murdoc taking a fresh pastichio, a slit-open this time. Since the bassist couldn't open the shell with his nails, he popped it into his mouth and cracked it using his teeth. He spat the shells into his palm to put them back into the bag and swallowed the nut.

It took almost an hour until the bag was empty. Cortez gave a content cawing and shifted into a comfortable position, pulling his head against his body and closing his eyes.

"Goodnight, mate," Murdoc said, going back to bed.

When a new day was dawning, the bassist woke up again by something gently striking his back, touching his prison tattoos of the seven Deadly Sins, a souvenir from the Mexican jail. Every time the light touch went across his spine, he couldn't help shivering. Nobody had touched this particular tender spot on him for decades, and being rather helpless to the tingly sensation displeased Murdoc almost as much as when Lucifer's fingertips had tickled his knees for spite. He opened his eyes to look at Bedelia who had wrapped an arm around his ribcage, obviously moving her fingertips across his back in her sleep. The sight of her head resting on his biceps made him smile. Carefully, he took her arm off him to roll on his back, place her hand on his chest and pull her close.

When the sun rays were creeping through the motorhome, Cortez straightened up, spreading his wings. Carefully, he smoothed his coat and flew onto the bed to wake up the bassist. Murdoc moaned when the raven's beak tapped his upper arm, hitting the black inverted cross tattoo. Carefully so that Bedelia wouldn't wake up, he sat up und looked at the bird percing on the pillow. Cortez tapped him again, hitting the lowest rib this time.

"Alright, alright, mate," Murdoc whispered, getting up, "See? I'm up." The raven, however, stayed put to look Bedelia over who was just regaining her senses. She wiped her eyes and smiled at the bird. Cortez leaned in closer to nudge her forehead with his beak. It was a surprisingly gentle touch, considering the bird's beak being strong enough to kill small animals or smash in windows if wanted.

"Morning, Cortez," Bedelia whispered. The raven tilted his head and looked her over before he left through the door Murdoc had opened. When the bird was gone, the bassist locked the door and slipped back underneath the blanket, putting his arm around Bedelia again and pulling her close against him. His heart turned a somersault when she moaned sleepily.

"Morning, luv," he whispered against her forehead.

"Morning, you sexy beast," Bedelia answered, running a hand across his chest.

"Feel good?" Murdoc asked, unable to hide a grin about the odd yet suitable nickname.

"Feel a bit tired. Don't remember sleeping."

"Well, you did." Murdoc thought for a moment before he suggested to get her some breakfast. He supposed that the band members had left some. Today was Pancake Day, recalled to life by 2-D to celebrate last New Years Day. Since then, it held place every second week.

"Thanks," Bedelia whispered, watching the bassist put on his jeans and boots and leave the motorhome. About ten minutes later, he returned, carrying a tray loaded with some forks and spoons, two mugs of coffee, a milk jug, a sugar bowl, a plate of pancakes and a smaller one of crispy bacon slices.

He put the tray onto the next shelf and stepped out of his boots and jeans before he crept back into bed, placing the tray between them on the blanket. Then, he put a few bacon slices between two pancakes like a sandwich and wolfed it down, every bite followed by lightly sugared black coffee. Bedelia sat up, rolled up a pancake and speared it to eat it with small bites. Seeing her lips wrap around the pancake roll, Murdoc felt an erection coming up. He leaned in on her and kissed the corner of her mouth.

"You're really amazing, luv," he whispered, putting the tray aside and putting his arm around her.

"You too, you sexy beast," Bedelia smiled, running her index finger along his collar bone and down his breast bone, gently ruffling his chest hair.

"Remember last night?" Murdoc suddenly asked, turning around to get Lucifer's bottle.

"No, why?"

"You din't feel very good," the bassist explained, "I got you some medicine from an old pal, and he told me it works best when taken after food."

"So that's with the breakfast," Bedelia mumbled. Murdoc nodded and said, "I want you to get well soon." He shook the bottle vigorously and held it out to Bedelia.

"That's it?" She frowned. He nodded again, opening the bottle and pouring some of the liquid into one of the spoons. Bedelia closed her lips tightly and eyed the spoon suspiciously.

"You trust me, do you?" Murdoc asked, the unfamiliar icy dash of desperation wrapping itself around his heart again. After a moment, Bedelia nodded. Murdoc ran the nail of his thumb along her lower lip, slightly tickling the corners of her mouth until she opened her lips and he could empty the spoon onto her tongue. When she had swallowed the liquid tasting a bit like stale lemonade, he kissed her. Bedelia rested her head on Murdoc's biceps, whispering, "Thanks, Mudz, you sexy beast." Smiling, he ran one of her braids through his fingers and his thumb along her cheek.

"My pleasure," he whispered back, "I just want you to recover soon, my dirty-sweet girl. Nothing else matters."

Bedelia closed her eyes, the ghost of a smile touching the corners of her mouth. The bassist took her hand and kissed the back. Then, he put his arm around her shoulder and laid back until his head had found the pillow. He pulled Bedelia close again and smiled when he felt her heart pace getting more even. It was still fast but more regular against his ribcage.

Three days later, Bedelia had recovered enough to get up again. Murdoc watched her sitting up against the pillow in her back every now and then. Relieved, he put the small bottle into his nightstand drawer. His relief grew when she moved to the edge of the bed, taking a deep breath and straightening up slowly.

"You okay, my dirty-sweet girl?" he said, sitting next to her and putting on his jeans and boots. "Hafta go in again before they miss me too bad."

"Feel fine. Just a bit tired," Bedelia answered when she felt his calloused hands rub her shoulders and arms. She turned her head to smile at him. Murdoc ran his hand across her throat and leaned in close to kiss her forehead.

"So glad you're better, my dirty-sweet girl," he whispered against her skin.

"Thanks for the breakfast and the medicine," Bedelia replied, running a hand up to his nape and tousling his hair.

"My pleasure." Getting up, the bassist smiled to himself and took a flourish bow at Bedelia. Then, he picked up the tray and left the Winnebago.

Bedelia picked herself up and went into the bathroom to wash her face, hands and lower arms. She couldn't help feeling proud about Murdoc having called her his dirty-sweet girl.

This time, the bassist returned at nightfall. Bedelia straightened up when she heard an angry snarl answering to a weepy voice outside. She sat up against the head of the bed again, adjusted a pillow against her back and wrapped the blanket around her upper body. Murdoc seemed to have company. She held her breath, waiting for what would happen.

When the door flew open, she saw the bassist drag a deathly pale 2-D along. Having entered and closed the motorhome's door, the bassist dropped the singer on the floor like a spoiled rag.

"What you up to, Mudz?" 2-D asked, curling his lanky body into a protective ball, hiding behind his hands and peeking through his fingers like a child witnessing something nasty.

"I told you to stop whistling through your navel, Faceache," the bassist growled, searching his pockets. Bedelia swallowed hard when his hand came up with a closed switch-blade. The vocalist whimpered at the sight, curling up tighter.

Slowly, the bassist knelt down next to 2-D, grabbing his neck and opening and closing the switchblade, starting out slow but picking up speed quickly. The dim light danced along the razor edge with every move. Finally, he grabbed 2-D's hair, dragging him into a sitting position.

"Now listen closely," Murdoc said in a low voice, running the knife's razor point down 2-D's face and throat, "If you don't learn when to keep your bleeding hole shut, I'm gonna cut something off next time you let your mouth run away from the blank sheet of paper you call brain. And I promise you, Faceache, they will be things you will miss. You'd better remember that!" Hastily, the singer nodded his assurements, shaking off the bassist's firm grip and making his way to the door on his hands and knees. The bassist closed the door with a deep sigh, wiping his hand against his jeans and shaking off the few strands of blue hair the singer had lost. Then, he slowly turned around, looking questioningly at Bedelia and sitting down on the foot of the bed.

"Was not my intention to do this in front of you, luv. For that I'm very sorry," he said lying back next to her and lacing his hands behind his neck, "Just was mad about what the blue-haired walking desaster area said when he thought I wasn't listening." A sigh escaped him before he continued, "Long story short, he made fun of the fact that you're still here with me by choice. Couldn't let him have a quick tongue once too often, could I?" He ran a hand through his fringe and turned his head to look at Bedelia who sat up and gently patted his elbow to show him she didn't resent him his deed. This hadn't been the first scary szene she had seen, and considering her fondness for horror and dystopian books and movies, it wouldn't be the last. The only difference was that it hadn't been on the screen this time. But the scare was brushed off soon by the fact that the bassist indeed had defended her. Not that 2-D was said to be a serious opponent – a few inches taller than Murdoc but far from being strong or smart enough to win a hand over the lean but fight-experienced bassist. Yet the mere thought of Murdoc standing up for her was somewhat flattering.

When Bedelia was feeling good enough to get up and walk around more often, Murdoc noticed her getting twitchy all of a sudden. She still enjoyed being in bed with him but when they laid side by side after the sex, he could see her eyes grow distant and thoughtful telling him she was bothered. Finally, he couldn't hold back. He put his arm around her shoulders, pulled her close and asked, "What is it, my lovely?"

"Well," Bedelia said, "I can't stay any longer."

"Why?" The bassist's voice turned into a whisper.

"They just unemployed me a week before we met, and the out-of-work benefits are a bad joke," Bedelia explained, "If I want to have a good life, I have to find a new job before they'll get the idea to cut my benefits. I'm sorry. I have to go home tomorrow."

"Where's your home, luv?" the bassist managed to ask.

"Mesquite, Nevada. Somewhere in the Las Vegas area."

"What if I'll take you there?"

"Better not. If you'd take me home, we'd kiss goodbye, and then I'd have to force myself into letting you go again." A sad smile crept across Bedelia's face. Murdoc had to tear his eyes from her face to hide how much this farewell affected him. However, he couldn't stop a single tear from running down his cheek.

"I'll never forget you, Murdoc Niccals," Bedelia whispered, wiping the tear off his jaw, "We had a heluva time together. Best I ever had."

"Thanks, luv," the bassist said, getting up and putting on his clothes, "Come say goodbye to my band, too." He went to the door and opened it, leaning against the frame. Bedelia got up to get dressed as well and followed him. Hesitatingly, she took the hand he held out to her. But the way he wrapped his fingers around her hand told her that he was much more affected by her farewell than he showed. She fought back the urge to say how much she regretted to leave. It sounded hollow and flat to her own ears.

No band member was in sight when Murdoc and Bedelia entered Kong Studios. It took a while until they found 2-D and Russel playing snooker in one of the back rooms. The vocalist who sat on the ring fence at the foot part of the table, blocking one of the holes with his heel, jerked around when he heard the pair's footsteps. The movement made him lose balance and hit the floor with a "Thud!".

"Hey there!" he beamed nonetheless, pulling himself up, "What's up?"

"Bedelia has to go home again," Murdoc said matter-of-factly, rubbing his lower back with the back of his free hand. Hearing his words made 2-D stare agape while Russel leaned on the snooker table, tapping the floor with his cue and looking at the balls' position.

"I came to say goodbye, guys," Bedelia said, "I have things to do bearing no delay." The tapping sound stopped apruptly.

"Good luck with your things then. It was nice to meet you," the drummer said, extending his hand. 2-D followed suit, patting Bedelia's shoulder. A predatory snarl was heard when Murdoc brushed the vocalist's hand off, almost knocking 2-D down again.

"Likewise, Russel," Bedelia said, shaking the drummer's large hand before Murdoc lead her out again. When they had reached the garage again, he leaned against the next wall, kicking up some dust with his heel.

"Can I stay one more night with you?" Bedelia asked hopefully. Murdoc arose to his full size, put his hands on her shoulders and nodded before he pulled her into a hug.

"I wouldn't want to let you go right here and now anyway," he said through clenched teeth as if every word was dragged through his nose from the depth of his chest. Relieved, Bedelia snuggled her face against his chest.

"Let's go back in," he whispered, making their fingers entwine between them. Bedelia raised her head to smile at him. Murdoc took a deep breath and smiled back. Hand in hand, they went back into the motorhome to cherish their company while it lasted. The pair spent the rest of the day in bed, talking and sharing lustful touches and kisses as well as the opened bottle of rum and a pack of her black cigarettes. When the night was coming down, Murdoc picked up a battered guitar from a corner and made himself comfortable on top of the blanket, resting his head on Bedelia's lap and starting to play without taking his eyes off her face. Looking at his naked lower belly hidden by the guitar and his long fingers plucking the strings and moving along the guitar's neck with practised grace and perfection, Bedelia tried to recognize the tune but she couldn't place it. Realizing him obviously playing something new to her made her smile. The bassist kept playing until she had fallen asleep. Then, he leaned the guitar against the next wall and shifted into a comfortable position to sleep himself.

Bedelia sighed when she woke up again to the sensation of Murdoc's hot breath breaking on her nape. Carefully, she freed herself from his arms and got up to get dressed and collect her things. Then, she bent across the bassist and kissed his cheek.

"Goodbye, sexy beast," she whispered, running her fingers through his hair, "You were great company."

"You too, my dirty-sweet girl," Murdoc whispered back, cracking his eyes open and sitting up in a swift movement. He pulled her into a tight embrace to make her sit on the bed, trailing soft kisses up her breastbone and along her throat and neck.

"You wouldn't want to sneak out just like that, eh?" he playfully growled when his cheek touched hers, getting up himself and making his way to the driver's seat. When he had jammed the keys into the ignition, jerking the engine alive, he patted the front passenger's seat and looked back at Bedelia, waving her close with his index finger.

"I'll take you to Mesquite city limits," he explained firmly when Bedelia had buckled her seatbelt. The glance following these words made her bite back any objection. The Winnebago picked up speed once they reached the next freeway.

Six months later, Bedelia left the phone company she had found a job at on a windy and late Saturday afternoon. She ran a hand through the short locks she wore since her braids made of artificial hair had losened and fallen off a few days ago. Then, she wrapped her coat tight around the two-piece dark-gray dress she wore with brown short-heeled laced boots and went for the next bus stop when a cawing sound among the usual traffic sounds made her stop in her tracks, squinting into the darkness. She followed the quite familiar sound across the dimly-lit parking lot. The only car left was parked underneath one of the street lamps that was flickering. Its dim light revealed the car being jet-black with a white roof and a fivepointed white star painted onto the driver's door. A small white box she didn't recognize at first sight was sitting on top of the engine hood, like on the cars mostly driven by black teenagers. Again, the cawing was heard from inside the car. Bedelia bent down to look inside when suddenly a green-skinned face leaned out and rested on folded arms clad in black cloth. Bedelia smiled when she heard a raspy voice say, "Well, hello there. If it isn't my dirty-sweet girl."

"Mudz!" Bedelia cheered, "What are you doing here, you sexy beast?"

"Offering you a lift home." Murdoc grinned, his teeth and eyes shining like being glazed over. The grin resembled a vertical crescent moon.

"I mean, how did you find me?"

"Actually, Cortez did," the bassist explained, gesturing at the raven perching on the back of the front passenger's seat. The bird shifted into a better position to take a slight bow at Bedelia. She bowed back at the bird and frowned slightly when she suddenly remembered having seen a flock of birds perching on a fence near the company on her first coffee and cigarette break. One of them indeed had been a raven keeping aloof.

Murdoc watched her, almost able to see the little cogwheels inside her brain turning. When understanding dawned in her eyes, he cupped her nape to pull her into a kiss. Bedelia closed her eyes, feeling a shiver run up and down her spine when he ran his tongue along her teeth.

"Come on," he invited after their tongues and lips had parted, "Let's take you home." Bedelia went around the car hood to get in. Before she slipped onto the seat, she bowed her head again at Cortez. When she had shifted into a comfortable position, Murdoc cupped her face, leaning in close until their foreheads touched.

"So good to see you again," he said, "I've been missing my dirty-sweet girl."

"And I've been missing you, my sexy beast," Bedelia responded after a minute, running her hand along her lower lip, from the wrist to the tip of her index finger. Then she ran a hand over the black rough denim jacket he was wearing for a shirt. Her fingers slipped between the buttons, gently tousling his chest hair. Smiling to himself, Murdoc let go of her and turned the key. The engine roared to life, setting the car into gear. Bedelia flopped back into her seat, watching the houses pass. It took almost an hour to reach Bedelia's house. Murdoc blinked in surprise when he realized that the house resembled a small castle with a castellated tower attached to its side and a low fence running around. Its walls were made of big and uneven gray stones, the windows were surrounded by square reddish bricks, the frames were painted as dark brown as the door sitting in the tower, and the roof was covered with brownish shingles. Murdoc almost expected to see a pixie peek out of a window or around a corner.

"Where did you find this house?" Murdoc wondered, "This looks like a midget castle." Bedelia laughed.

"I know. Some rich guy had it brought here brick by brick from somewhere in Scotland about sixty years ago. But then he lost interest and went to live in Florida, they say. It was sold by a so-called _reverse public sale_ with the smallest amount being the best bid," she explained, "136 Dollars and 66 Cents made it mine."

"You're serious?" Murdoc asked. Bedelia nodded, inviting him in.

"By the bye, luv, what happened to your braids?" Murdoc wondered, getting out of the car. He leaned against the car's roof on one elbow, waiting for her to get out as well. Cortez flew through the open door to perch on the nearest tree.

"They were made of artificial hair," Bedelia explained when she had gotten out of the car, "I lost them a few days ago when they were losing their grip. That's what's left of my own hair. Hope you're not disappointed." She ran a hand through her locks. Quickly, the bassist pushed his door shut and stepped next to her, putting an arm around her and pulling her close.

"Why should I be disappointed? You know, I din't miss your braids," he whispered, "I missed all of you, like feeling your breath and your smooth skin against mine in the morning. And smelling your sweet scent, too." Gently, he ran his hand through her locks, pecking her cheek.

"Come in," she invited again, entwining her fingers with his and running her thumb across the skin between his thumb and index finger. Then, she unlocked the door, leading him in. The bassist looked around, not being very surprised to see a fitting furniture made of dark wood, cloth and leather. He sat down on the couch upholstered with dark red velvety cloth.

When Bedelia had taken off her daytime clothes in her upstairs bedroom, she came back, wearing a sleeveless black dress made of thin cloth falling down to her ankles. The dress she mostly used as a house frock was slit open beneath her arms and up from her ankles to her knees on each side. The light brown skin showing in these slits suggested that she was naked underneath the dress covering her body frame like a waterfall of thin cloth. She sat down next to him, snuggling against his chest and holding her breath when she heard a quiet rumble from his stomach.

"You seem to feel hungry," she stated. "How does potatoes with butter and bacon bits sound to you? I have potatoes in the cabinet begging me to be cooked."

"Potatoes with butter and bacon?" Murdoc repeated, "Sounds like my kind of meal!"

"Then, potatoes with butter and bacon it's gonna be," Bedelia promised, running a hand along his arm and neck, "Make yourself at home, my sexy beast." The bassist shot her an amused look from underneath his fringe, unbottoning his jacket. A few minutes later, the jacket fell next to him onto the back of the couch, quickly followed by his jeans and underpants. He pushed his boots aside and laid down, planting his feet on the couch, close against his torso, slightly spreading his legs apart. Then, he laced his hands behind his neck and took a deep breath.

About half an hour later, Bedelia returned to the living room, carrying a tray holding forks, two beer tumblers and two soup plates, a big steaming bowl of boiled potatoes, a small bowl of raw bacon bits and a pitcher resembling a big milk jug with melted butter. The entire tableware, except for the clear glasses and the greyish pitcher, was black and octagonal. The sight of Bedelia setting the table made Murdoc sit up straight at once, licking his lips.

"Care for a drink?" she asked, knowing full well it was just a question out of politeness.

"Sure," the bassist answered.

"Coming right over," Bedelia said, already going towards a small cabinet painted black with red drawers and doors in the corner of the room and getting one bottle of branded whiskey, one bottle of branded black rum, another black bowl with high walls and a golden handle attached containing big balls of ice and one half-empty bottle of Coca-Cola from the small fridge inside. She placed the rum, the whiskey and the ice bucket in front of the bassist and the Coca-Cola next to her plate. When Murdoc had downed a glass of rum on ice, Bedelia poured herself a glass of Coca-Cola with a dash of rum on ice. Murdoc eyed the iceball in his glass that had melted just a little bit – unlike the usual icecubes. Bedelia took another sip from her glass before she shared the food and said, "Enjoy."

The bassist didn't hesitate to mash the potatoes and the bacon bits with the melted butter and dig in. When he had emptied his plate, he slouched into his seat, running a hand over his little pot belly to indicate he was satisfied.

"That was great," he said, "Best potatoe dish I had in months."

"Thank you," Bedelia smiled, "It was Gramma's favourite meal with asparagus spears for holidays and birthdays when I was a teen. Glad you like it." She sat next to him, running a hand up his arm and shoulder.

"It was sheer poetry of salt and fat." The bassist shifted into a better position to put his head on her shoulder and gently kiss her neck. Since he couldn't remember when somebody had cooked just for him, he enjoyed the situation to the full.

"You're really amazing, my dirty-sweet girl," he added, running his fingertips through her hair, "Wouldn't have thought you could be even more marvellous but here's the proof. Like I said, I rank you pretty near the top among my Top Ten birds."

"Thanks, Mudz," Bedelia answered, her eyes meeting his. She felt an urge to confess she had been craving for a man like him, just like she had done in the dreams having come to her almost every night. But something in the gleam of his eyes and the way his tongue slid out of the corner of his mouth made her dismiss that urge.

"Wanna go upstairs?" she asked instead. The bassist nodded, hauling himself off his seat. When they were standing side by side, Bedelia reached out for his hand and wrapped her hand around his fingers in a soft yet firm grip to lead him up the spiral stairs into the bedroom. When they had reached the upstairs bedroom, she noticed that she hadn't taken Murdoc's hand since the bassist had laced his hands behind his head. A meaningful smile crept into his face while he ran one hand through his fringe. Without letting go of his rod, Bedelia stood on her toes to kiss his chin. In response, the bassist wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace to claim her lips for a deep kiss, causing his erection to rub against her belly.

"Come in," she whispered when their lips and tongues parted. She sat down on the bed, pulling him close enough to kiss the tip of his rod. Simultanously, she ran her free hand over his lower back and his buttocks. Murdoc knelt down in front of her, pushing up her dress and pulling down her underpants. He licked his lips at the sight of her clean-shaven crotch and bent down further to get a sniff. Then, he took hold of her left ankle and ran his tongue slowly along the back of her foot and up her shin, cherishing the subtle influence of the shaving foam and the floral scent he already knew. Smiling to himself, the bassist kissed her knee-cap and ran the tip of his tongue up her inner thigh and through her vagina, from her hole to her clit and back, making her let lose a string of deep-throated moanings. Hearing this made him realized how much he really had missed her. Slowly, his lips crawled up her body, trailing tiny love bites and soft kisses along the soft curves of her belly and bosom, pausing to circle her belly-button and her nipples with the tip of his tongue. Murdoc couldn't help smiling again when her moaning got louder with every inch his lips passed. When his lips had reached her throat, he felt her cupping his nape. He laid down next to her, wrapping his arm around her and pulling her close. His free hand searched hers to entwine their fingers between their bodys. He leaned his forehead against hers and whispered, "Have you ever been told that you're a woman of particular... good... taste?" Bedelia couldn't help laughing quietly at the compliment while his rod poked her hole.

"Not yet, my sexy beast. Thank you," she whispered back, shifting in a better position to permit him entrance. A long passionate moaning followed the last word when he pushed himself in, pausing every now and then and letting her adjust her to his size like he had done before. When Bedelia wrapped her legs around him and curled her fingers into his hair, he nearly exploded inside her. He took a deep breath, feeling his rod soften again and slip out of her. Then, he laid down next to her again, taking a deep breath and wrapping an arm around her middle. Bedelia took a deep breath as well when he snuggled his nose into the fleshy crook of her neck. Feeling his hot breath break on her skin and his calloused fingertips gently rub her nipples sent a shiver down her spine. She put her hands on top of his, gently rubbing his knuckles and wrists in small circles.

"Say, luv," the bassist suddenly asked, "Did you shave on my account?"

"I had the idea this morning in the shower," Bedelia answered, snuggling her bottom against his crotch. Murdoc kissed her nape and caught a fresh sniff of her scent, smiling to himself.

"Looks and feels great," he said, his hand crawling down to cup her crotch. His middle finger came to rest at her hole, gently circling it and moving in and out while he drifted off to sleep. It took Bedelia half an hour to fall sleep as well after she had shifted her legs to give him more room for his finger. She couldn't help smiling when his index finger started slipping in as well, the friction of his nails against her inner flesh trigging memories of their first night together. Finally, she drifted off to sleep herself.

It was almost noon when Bedelia woke up again, being a bit disppointed that Murdoc's fingers had slipped out of her unnoticed. Sleep had turned him on his back with his other arm slipped between her neck and shoulder pulling her back close against his ribcage. His hand had come to rest on her ribcage. Carefully, she turned around to face him. First thing she noticed was his other hand splayed across his belly on top of the blanket. The middle and index finger were lubricated up to the knuckles. The sight made Bedelia smile and shiver with delight.

All of a sudden, she felt thirsty. She freed herself from his arm and went into the kitchen to prepare the coffee machine and get a cold drink from the open chocolate milk box in the fridge door.

When she came back into the bedroom, the bassist was sitting upright against the pillows, stretching his arms and legs and wiping his eyes. Bedelia sat down on the edge of the bed when he looked at his hand and ran the tip of his tongue along his lubricated fingers as if eating a Popsicle.

"Thanks for another wonderful experience, my sexy beast," Bedelia said, leaning in close to kiss his cheek, "Almost forgot what talented fingers and tongue you have." A grin spread on Murdoc's face when he pulled her close and kissed her lips, poking her lips with the tip of his tongue and slipping in to run it along her teeth.

"Thank you," he whispered when pulling back. Then, he furrowed his brows in slight confusion, asking, "Do I taste chocolate there?"

"I had some after waking up," Bedelia explained, "Sometimes I need a cold sip of something still first thing in the morning." The bassist smiled at this and kissed her lips again.

"How about some breakfast for my sexy beast?" Bedelia asked when their lips parted.

"Wouldn't leave me cold," the bassist answered. Bedelia nodded and put on her house frock to go into the kitchen. She switched on a small ghetto-blaster holding a CD with her favourite songs from Judas Priest, Manowar, Guns'n'Roses and Nick Cave before she searched her fridge and found a box of chicken eggs, a single bigger egg in a shallow bowl and an opened pack of bacon slices.

She switched on the coffee maker before she put a pan and a sauce-pan with white ceramic coating on the stove and placed the bacon slices into the pan. Then, she got a bowl and cracked some chicken eggs and the bigger egg to scramble them with salt and pepper. She put a teaspoon of goose fat into the sauce-pan. Her best friend Maureen Straker had given her a small pot of it as a present for last Christmas, and since then Bedelia preferred it over concentrated butter when frying eggs. When the fat was melted, she poured the eggs into the sauce-pan and slowly started to scramble the eggs with a fork. A few minutes later, the bacon was crispy and the eggs were fried golden brown. Bedelia shared the breakfast on two of her black octogonal plates when she felt Murdoc's breath touch her ear conch and his hands run up and down her hips and thighs. She cranked her neck to kiss his chin and pushed one of the plates in his direction. The bassist kissed her temple in return and took the plate to sit down at the table.

"I thought your coffee wouldn't mind an Irish tuning," she said. Unable to hide a grin, the bassist unscrewed the bottle and took a sip before pouring a big dash into his black coffee with half a teaspoon of brown sugar. He stirred carefully, took a sip, licked his lips and leaned in close to kiss her lips. Then, he sniffed the eggs before taking a careful bite, using the bacon slices for spoons.

"This tastes a bit richer," he said through a mouthful.

"I added a goose egg," Bedelia explained, "I started using them in addition to chicken eggs about a month ago whenever I can get my hands on them."

When the bassist's plate and cup were empty, Manowar's song "Heart of Steel" was replaced by the deep mellow voice of Nick Cave, singing a duet with the equally mellow voice of a woman about a boy meeting a girl who failed to seduce him, killing him in the end. It made Murdoc smile to himself even if he didn't recognize the tune.

"My dirty-sweet girl is a little softie when it comes to music, eh?" he asked.

"There's a memory connected with each song on the CD," Bedelia explained, "You prefer a harder pace, I guess."

"Mostly, I do. But sitting here with you makes these songs worth listening." The bassist's smile widened as he cupped her chin and leaned in close to kiss her.

"How about a refill?" Bedelia asked when their lips parted. Murdoc hummed in agreement, pushing his cup over. She got up to fetch the pitcher and pour him another cup of coffee. Adding a bit of sugar and another dash of whiskey, Murdoc looked her over for the umpteenth time. A distant smile was spreading on his face when Nick Cave's song was finished, followed by two slightly faster songs of Judas Priest he didn't recognize, either. Slowly, he ran his hand along Bedelia's arm and shoulder to pull her close and claim her lips for another deep kiss.

"My dirty-sweet girl," he whispered when their lips parted, leaning his forehead against her temple.

"My sexy beast," Bedelia whispered back.

"You hafta work tomorrow again, right?" the bassist asked after a few minutes, taking her hand and running his thumb across the back.

"Uh-hu. They expect me at eleven-thirty," Bedelia said, "Won't be home until 5 in the afternoon."

"I'll take you to work then," Murdoc suggested, "Then I'll go take care of some things." Bedelia smiled when he made their fingers entwine again.

"Got any plans for the rest of the day, my sexy beast?" Bedelia asked, running her thumb across the skin between his index finger and thumb.

"I'm always open for ideas from my dirty-sweet girl." A broad grin spread on Murdoc's face, slowly revealing that one of his lower back teeth had gone missing. He ran the knuckles of his free hand along her jaw, cupped her chin and claimed her lips for a deep kiss.

"Sounds like a heluva plan," Bedelia whispered when their mouths parted. The bassist got up, taking a flourish bow at her and kissing the back of her hand before he pulled her against his still naked body. Bedelia smiled when she felt his rod hardening against her belly.

"Would my dirty-sweet girl please follow me..." he whispered, taking her hand and making his way to the bedroom. Bedelia smiled, giving in to his movement. Having arrived at the bedroom's door, he leaned against the door and pulled her into a tight embrace, claiming her lips for another deep kiss. Bedelia responded eagerly, running her fingers through his hair and down his chest. After about 10 minutes, Murdoc pushed the door open and stepped into the bedroom. He pulled her with him, making them tumble on top of the bed and melt into lustful kisses and touches. Feeling his semi-hard rod growing stronger with every heartbeat, the bassist knelt down in front of her, groping for the hem of her dress to push it up and for her underpants to pull it down. Then, he bent down to run his tongue up her shins and thighs, pausing every now and then to cherish the scent from between her thighs. A sound of anticipation escaped him when he opened her legs and saw her vagina's inner flesh glistening with tempting wetness, looking like a rose after an April shower. Slowly, he took her dress off, running his tongue across her hips and upper body until it reached her throat and chin. Finally, Murdoc claimed her lips for a deep kiss. Simultanously, his rod slid into her hole like a boat gliding into water. Bedelia moaned and wrapped one leg around his hip as well as both arms around his ribcage when she felt his climax fill her insides with his semen. The bassist couldn't help shivering when he felt her breath brush against his sideburn.

Bedelia froze to the spot when she had left the company after another nerve-wrecking day and noticed a raven perching on the company's mailbox. She pulled her coat around the dark-red long-sleeved velvet shirt and the dark-blue pair of boot-cut jeans she wore with the brown short-heeled laced booties, went closer and took a deep breath when she noticed the bird's bright red eyes.

"Hello, Cortez," she said, "Had a good time?" Cortez flew to perch on the coat's sleeve covering her lower arm and wiped his beak against her hand. Again, the touch was surprisingly gentle.

"Are you here on your own?" she asked. The raven cawed and turned his head as if pointing at the parking lot. Bedelia followed his movement with her eyes and noticed Murdoc's car sitting in a corner of the parking lot. She went over, trying to make out details.

"Hello there," Murdoc suddenly said, leaning out of the front seat window. Bedelia was surprised to see him wearing a khaki uniform jacket and a black officer's hat with a shiny bill and a small pair of goggles sitting atop the bill.

"Hey, my sexy beast," she answered, "I found your message." She lifted her arm so Cortez could climb onto the bassist's shoulder. The raven took his time to step on the bassist's elbow and walk along to the shoulder, pausing to wipe his beak against Murdoc's biceps. Bedelia smiled at the bassist and walked around the car's hood to get in. When she had sat down, she noticed Murdoc wearing matching pants with the jacket that turned out to be a shirt on closer inspection since it was tucked into the pants and unbottoned down to his belly, showing his chest hair and making his inverted golden cross rest on top of the curve of his belly. The pant's lower legs were tucked into a pair of black jackboots. She couldn't make out a rank but all in all, the bassist looked like having been around to plan World War II.

"Had a nice day, my dirty-sweet girl?" he asked, pushing back his hat and leaning in close to kiss her lips.

"Not really. Busy and full of stupid people asking stupid question about their telephone bills, just as always. And how about you? Made everything you wanted to do?" Murdoc jerked his thumb over his shoulder at a few bags tossed on the backseat in respond.

"Nice outfit, by the way," Bedelia added, patting his thigh, "Been to the shops?"

"Nah, it's old. I got it when we did the video for one of our singles – I don't remember which one –, and I just felt like wearing it now." The bassist waved a dismissive hand.

"It looks good on you," Bedelia smiled.

"Thanks. I've got something for you," Murdoc answered, running his hand down her face, "Close your eyes." Bedelia obeyed. When the bassist ran his knuckles along her cheek and told her to open her eyes again, she noticed one of the shirt's front pockets was unbottoned. Then, she looked at the bracelet resting on Murdoc's palm. It was a silver locket attached to a long delicate chain. A Celtish swirl decorated the lid.

"For me?" she managed to ask when her heart pace had slowed down. The bassist nodded, cupping her chin and running his thumb across her cheek.

"Open it," he said. Bedelia obeyed, revealing a carved-in pentagram on the inside.

"That's beautiful. Thank you, my sexy beast," she said when Murdoc slipped the chain over her head and kissed her lips.

"And it looks beautiful on you," he said, touching the locket resting between her breasts, "Much more beautiful than I thought." He pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Where did you find it, if I may ask?" Bedelia whispered when she felt his nails grazing her neck.

"It's the first non-food thing I stole," Murdoc answered, a sly grin spreading on his face. His tone made Bedelia laugh quietly.

"When I finished school and left Stoke, I was a bit too young for a regular job, so I had my years of shoplifting to survive," the bassist explained after a few minutes, "The locket was the first non-food thing I felt like wanting just in case I'd get the chance to sell it or meet someone really worth wearing it. It took more than 20 years but here you are."

A proud smile touched the corners of Bedelia's mouth. It widened when Murdoc cupped her face and ran his thumb along her lips.

"Thanks, my sexy beast," she whispered, "And what can I do for you now?"

"Wait and see..." The bassist smiled to himself, turning the key and setting the car into movement. Having arrived at her house, he got out of the car, picking up some of the bags from the backseat and carrying them in. Cortez flew onto a near-by tree. Bedelia looked at a small bag still occupying the backseat before she picked it up and followed him. The bassist put the bags into a corner in the hall and went into the living room. He sat on the couch, lighting up a cigarette, stretching out his legs and crossing them at the ankles. Then, he held his hand out to Bedelia, pulling her into a kiss.

"I feel like having spuds with butter and bacon again," he said, drawing at his cigarette, "What do you say?"

"As you wish," Bedelia answered, getting up and going into the kitchen. An hour later, she came back to set the table and serve. When everything was in place, she got the iceballs, the whiskey, the rum and a fresh bottle of Coca-Cola, too.

"Enjoy," she said, sharing the food and pouring drinks. This time, Murdoc took his time to cherish every bite and sip. When he almost had emptied his plate, there was a rapping sound against the nearest window-frame. Bedelia opened the window to let Cortez in. The raven went to perch onto the table, looking over the bowls and plates before he turned his attention towards the small bowl of bacon bits, tapping the rim.

"Be my guest," Bedelia invited. The raven didn't hesitate to gobble down a beakful of bacon bits. When he got thirsty, he turned his attention towards Bedelia's glass of Coca-Cola with rum, taking a few quick sips. Bedelia wasn't very surprised to see that the bird obviously enjoyed the drink.

A week full of passionate love-making passed until Bedelia received a call from her best friend Maureen who asked how she had been since they had met the last time. Bedelia was happy to hear her friend's voice until Maureen suggested to drop in. Bedelia bit her lip before she said, "Not a good plan, Dear. I've got a visitor."

"Who?" Maureen asked, "Did somebody new enter your life once again?"

"Yes, oh yes," Bedelia sighed, glancing at Murdoc sitting naked except for his boots at the head of the table, looking a lot like a savage tribe's king on his throne with a half-smoked cigarette sitting between his index and middle finger and a half-empty glass of whiskey sitting in front of him. He held her gaze for a few minutes, drawing slowly at the cigarette and exhaling the smoke through tiny gaps among his teeth before he took a sip of whiskey. Once again, Bedelia considered the thin trails of smoke rising from the gaps among his teeth a very interesting sight.

"Well?" Maureen asked, "What's he like, Sweetie?"

"He's... well... special, in lack of a better word," Bedelia said, tearing her eyes from Murdoc's face, "Different from the guys I met before."

"Come on, Sweetie – don't let me drag every word out of you!" Maureen snorted. Bedelia sighed before she said, "He's a British musician, to begin with, a bassist. We met in a bar, about 8 months ago, and we had a heluva time together."

"8 fucking months? And it didn't cross your mind to tell me?" Maureen's voice dropped with surprise. Bedelia closed her eyes when she heard her friend say, "If he shook you up like I think he did, I really wanna meet him."

"Okay, okay," Bedelia gave in, knowing full well that her friend had never been one to give up that easy.

"See you tomorrow, then," Maureen said before she said goodbye and hung up. Bedelia hung up herself and put the telephone back into its cradle.

"What is it, luv?" the bassist asked, finishing his smoke and stubbing it in the ashtray. He drained his glass and moved next to Bedelia, putting his head onto her lap.

"My best friend called to say that she'll drop in tomorrow," Bedelia explained, running her fingertips across his chest and belly, "We haven't met for months, and she asked what's new, so I told her about you, and now she's dying to meet you."

"So far, I never got to meet a woman's best friend." Murdoc chuckled to himself, running his knuckles along her cheek and down her front. He paused to cup and caress her left breast.

"That means I better keep my clothes on, eh?" he suddenly asked, his voice carrying a frown hidden by his fringe.

"Well... Maureen was never one to be touchy but she might lose control at this sight," Bedelia answered, running her hand down his belly and cupping his crotch for a moment, "But speaking of it, do you think you could keep your clothes on as long as she's here? She won't stay the night, I promise. She always says so if she wants to – our personal rule is that we can visit each other anytime but we better ask before staying the night – and she didn't mention it this time." Murdoc ran his hand along her arm and nodded.

"Thanks, my sexy beast." Bedelia took hold of his wrist to kiss the inside of his middle and index finger.

"I guess you can go shirtless when she's around," she added, "But I wouldn't want her to see your showpiece. I know this woman for almost 20 years now, and so far we didn't even fight over money, even if people say that money breaks any friendship. I don't want to start a fight over you." The bassist couldn't help grinning while sitting up and pulling her against him.

"No need to worry, my dirty-sweet girl. All will be well," he whispered into her ear, "I feel good having you around for a reason."

"Me too," Bedelia answered, smiling. Murdoc cupped her head, pulling her into a kiss. When their mouths parted, he kissed her temple, suggesting to go to bed. Bedelia took the hand he held out to her, leading him to the bedroom and slipping underneath the blanket.

The bassist sat down on the edge of the bed, reclining until his head found the pillow. Then, he slipped underneath the blanket as well, scooting close to her warm smooth skin, his leg hitching over hers. Bedelia wrapped her arm around his ribcage, resting her head on his biceps. Murdoc wrapped an arm around her to pull her as close as possible, feeling her soothingly warm breath break on his chest.

After a few hours of unsteady sleep, Murdoc felt something odd fill his heart. On closer expection it turned out to be great nervousness. He released Bedelia and moved to the edge of the bed, drumming his nails against his elbow joint to put himself at ease. It took him until Midnight to realize it was no use. He got up, donned a pair of faded black jeans and his boots and went downstairs to rummage his bags. The biggest one held what he had been looking for – an opened bottle of absinthe, thirteen dark blue candles and a book were jammed sloppily among sweaters, pants, shirts, tee shirts and a limited amount of underwear. He took the bag and went into the living-room. Cortez who had made himself comfortable on a couch cushion greeted him with a low cawing when Murdoc flopped himself in one of the dark red armchairs next to the square fire-place made of red bricks in a corner of the room, put the bottle next to the armchair and arranged the candles close enough to shine dim light, just bright enough for reading. As soon as the bassist had lit up the candles, had pulled up a stool as a footrest, had shifted into a comfortable position, putting his feet onto the stool and crossing his legs, and had taken a swig from the bottle, Cortez moved onto the back of the armchair as if to look into the book as well.

The bassist opened the book containing the complete tales and poems of Edgar Allen Poe at a random page and started reading. Whenever he had finished a tale or poem, he drank from the bottle or glanced at Cortez. Almost every time, one of the raven's bright red eyes locked with the bassist's reddish eye for a few minutes.

Finally, when the sunlight streamed into the room, Murdoc snapped the book shut and pinched out the candles. The sound of the closing book startled Cortez, causing him to fly towards the window and tap the frame. Murdoc mumbled his agreements, wiped his eyes with his heel of hand and got up to open the window. The cool wind breaking on his chest made him shiver slightly. He took the bottle, the book and the candles into the kitchen, taking a closer look at the prepared coffee maker and switched it on. When the scent of freshly brewed coffee filled the kitchen, he looked into the fridge. There was a fresh box of chicken eggs and two bigger eggs in another shallow bowl sitting on top of a fresh pack of bacon stripes. Murdoc couldn't help chuckling to himself as he wondered what Russel might say about him being in the kitchen for something else than searching the fridge for a fresh bottle of alcohol whatsoever.

About an hour and three cups of black coffee with a pinch of brown sugar later, Murdoc was finished cooking a small heap of crispy bacon with toast and fried eggs sunny side up. He wiped his hands on a dish cloth he had slipped through one of his jeans' beltloops and went through the cabinets and drawers to find dishes and silverware. Looking at the breakfast he had fixed, he couldn't refrain from grinning broadly. He pulled the pans off the burners and went upstairs. Bedelia moaned sleepily when he sat down on the edge of the bed, running his knuckles across her cheek. He couldn't help smiling to himself when he noticed her foot sticking out from underneath the covers. She opened her eyes and sat up when she felt him dragging his nails slowly along her sole, from the heel to the toes before he quickly ran the nail of his thumb along the skin below her toes, making the foot twitch.

"What's up?" she whispered loud, wiping her eyes and hiding her foot underneath the covers, "What time is it?"

"Don't worry," Murdoc answered, pulling her into a hug and kissing her cheek, "It's still early. Sun's up since an hour or so."

"Have you been up all night?" Bedelia wondered.

"Yup. I was reading a bit to soothe my mind."

"Did it help?"

"Sure. Reading Edgar Allan Poe mostly helps."

"Not to mention drinking absinthe, I suppose," Bedelia smiled, kissing his lips.

"Breakfast's waiting in the kitchen," the bassist said, returning the kiss.

"Breakfast?" Bedelia was astonished.

"Yup. Coffee, toast, bacon and fried eggs. Hope you like it." A bashful smile crawled across Murdoc's lips. He got up and went for the door. Having opened it, he turned around and said, "Coming, luv?" Bedelia nodded, creeping out of the bed and putting on her underwear and her long black house frock to follow him into the kitchen and sit at the table. Murdoc put a plate with bacon and eggs between two slices of toast and a cup of white coffee without sugar in front of her. Bedelia took a bite from the egg-and-bacon-sandwich and smiled.

"Well, my sexy beast, you have much more qualities than I thought," she said between two bites. The bassist smiled back.

"You see, when I was a child, Dad din't take care of food for Hannibal and me, and since I din't want to starve or live on lousy sandwiches all the time, I learned how to cook simple food at some point – eggs and bacon, pasta and such. Same when I was grown enough for a job. Working as a grave-digger din't make me much money, so I still had to take care of myself. And after all the cooking you did for me, it was high time to return the favour," he explained, sitting next to her and running his hand along her shoulder and neck before he started eating himself. Smiling, Bedelia rubbed his thigh and licked egg yolk off her lips. Then, she bent over to kiss his cheek. Her lips left a yellowish stain looking odd against the green skin. The bassist frowned a bit when he felt the wet on his cheek. Carefully, he wiped his cheek with the back of his hand and cleaned his hand with his tongue after a quick look. He took the last bite of toast with bacon and egg before getting up.

"I'll be in the shower, luv," he said, bending down to kiss her lips.

"Upstairs next to the bedroom. Towels are in the in-walled wardrobe in between." Bedelia smiled.

Murdoc took a deep breath before he openend the bathroom door. First thing he noticed was the scent of vinegar that seemed to ooze from every pore, as if the whole room had been dipped in a dozen times at least. It took the bassist a few minutes to adjust to its intensity. Then, he saw the room was tiled wall-to-wall with red and black tiles, looking like a weird chessboard. 6 square mirror pieces sitting atop the sink interrupted the pattern. The shower head sat among two ceiling-to-floor glass plates forming a cubicle in a corner. One glass plate had two metal hinges and a metal door knob attached to open it. Murdoc took off his jeans and boots and tossed the jeans onto the toilet lid to step into the shower and turn on the water. The floor between the glass plates and the walls was covered with a transparent film shaped like circles of different sizes. Compared to the smooth and cool tiles, the circles felt a bit odd against his feet. It took a few minutes until the water had changed to an agreeable temperature. Murdoc put his hands against the wall and examined the range of transparent bottles sitting on a small shelf in front of him. Every bottle wore a colourful cap, containing scented shower gels he didn't feel like using. Finally, he settled for a bottle with a pale yellow cap siting aloof. The whitish gel inside carried a smell he found quite agreeable since it reminded him of his clothes still warm from the tumbler – his most favourite scent from his childhood. This way, he would smell better but not feel perfumed. A content sigh escaped him when he felt the water trail down his back and legs.

Carefully, he soaped up his ribcage, hips and legs, sending tiny bubbles afloat. Suddenly, the sound of the glass door opening and a cool whisp of air startled him. He turned his head to see Bedelia standing in the shower, just separated by the broad waterfall pouring down from the shower head. Her arms were glistening with water as she reached out for him. The bassist couldn't help grinning about the sight of her pubic hair starting to grow back. He got down on one knee to take a closer look, carefully running his thumb across the stubbles scattered across the smooth skin. He bent closer to plant a soft kiss on the tip of her crotch. Thus, the water poured down on his neck and shoulders.

"Thought you wouldn't mind some company," Bedelia said, shivering with delight and holding on to his shoulders.

"Great idea, my dirty-sweet girl," Murdoc replied against her crotch, his hands wandering up and down her inner legs. Bedelia gasped when his index and middle finger slid into and out of her hole, the nails grazing her inner flesh.

"My pleasure, my sexy beast," she whispered, once again amazed by the sensation. Murdoc looked at her face, unable to hide a grin. Then, he ran the tip of his tongue up her belly and bosom to reach her throat and mouth. His tongue slipped into her mouth, touching the spot where her back tooth was missing. Simultanously, his fingers moved quicker in and out. He wrapped his other arm around her, pulling her close and steadying her. Bedelia responded by standing up on her toes and wrapping her arms around his neck to make their tongues meet vigorously. Slowly, Murdoc's free hand went down her back to squeeze her buttocks. Bedelia smiled, imitating his touch before freeing herself from his grip and leaving the shower after a final kiss so he could finish his cleanup.

"Get me the small bag from the living-room, would you, luv?" he said when he noticed her covering herself with a big towel and leaving. Bedelia held up her free hand, forming a circle with thumb and index finger. The towel covered her body like a strapless wrap dress falling down to her calves. When she returned, the bassist was done taking a shower himself. He toweled himself off before rummaging the bag for fresh clothes. It took a few minutes to find a clean pair of dark blue jeans and a dark gray, almost black v-neck sweater to wear with his boots. Contently, he nodded at his mirror image while getting dressed.

When he had dressed, he went to look after Bedelia who had gone into her bedroom to get dressed, too. She had picked the pair of dark blue boot-cut jeans to go with a purple sleeveless tee shirt and a matching jacket. The bassist sat down next to her on the edge of the bed, hugging her from behind and pecking the nape. Her skin had caught the clean-cotton-scent of the shower gel he had used. It made his tongue slip out of the corner of his mouth. Gently, he ran the tip along her jaw, cherishing her smooth skin. Simultanously, his hands went to rub her nipples and her crotch through her clothes.

"That was a really nice shower," he whispered, taking his hand off her crotch and entwining their fingers, "Thanks to you, my dirty-sweet girl."

"My pleasure entirely," Bedelia smiled.

"What do you think if I'd shave you in return? Would be my pleasure." The bassist chuckled and smiled to himself, the tip of his tongue bouncing excitedly at the level of his Adam's apple before it slowly reeled back in.

"Sounds good to me," Bedelia agreed, "I'm mostly afraid to cut myself when shaving. That's why I didn't do it in a while."

The doorbell interrupted the conversation. The pair went downstairs into the living-room. Murdoc sat down on the chair at the head of the table, lighting up one of Bedelia's black cigarettes, taking a deep drag and blowing a few smoke rings. Bedelia headed for the door, hugging her friend who had chosen a sleeveless black velvet dress with dark purple ornaments to go with black fishnets and black laced booties. The dress falling down to her knees on the front and to her calves at the back was clinging to Maureen's bony body that most likely hadn't gained weight since puberty. Bedelia smiled at Maureen's emerald eyes shining with excitement.

"So, where is this guy who shook you up like an earthquake breaking the Richter scale?" was written all over her pupils. Maureen looked her friend over and pulled her in a hug to whisper, "You look dazzling, Sweetie. He must have pushed the right buttons."

"Thanks, Dear. Come in." Bedelia ran a hand along Maureen's hair – one side dyed red, the other side dyed black – falling in a braid over her left shoulder down to her teacup-sized breasts. Then, she took her friend's hand looking like marble against Bedelia's peanut-coloured skin. Murdoc straightened up when the friends entered the living-room.

"Maureen Straker, meet Murdoc Niccals," Bedelia introduced. The bassist took Maureen's hand and bowed his head at her. Bedelia watched her friend looking the bassist over, her eyes carrying a look of surprised shock. Then, she glanced at Bedelia, raising an eye-brow.

"How on earth did that happen?" the eyebrow said. Bedelia shot her a look that replied, "None of your business, Dear. I'm just glad to know him."

"How about some coffee?" she asked to make the tension lose a bit when Murdoc sat down again, crossing his knees, picking up his cigarette and taking a draw. Maureen lit a cigarette as well and said, "Della said you're a four-stringer." Taking another draw at his cigarette and smiling to himself, Murdoc nodded. It happened very rarely that somebody knowing this word wouldn't recognize him at first go.

"Ever heard of _The Gorillaz_? Known as the greatest band on earth?" he asked, unable to hide a grin. Maureen gasped, wiping her mouth.

"Yeah," she confessed, casting her eyes down, "Della didn't mention that she met a man that famous." The bassist chuckled to himself, tipping off some ash from his cigarette. Bedelia entered, carrying a tray holding something resembling a milk bottle but turning out to be a set consisting of three earless white cups, a white milk jug formed like a tiny bottle with a long neck and a white sugar bowl, next to a coffee pitcher, a tiny red latte cup, a small bottle of mineral water and a plate of muffins. A sigh escaped her when she noticed Murdoc and Maureen talking to each other peacefully. She shared the cups – the tiny red one filled halfways with water and put aloof –, the sugar-bowl and the milk jug before she placed the plate of muffins in the middle of the table. A sudden rapping against one of the window-frames interrupted the scene. The bassist turned his head to see Cortez perching on the window-sill. He got up to open the window. Maureen followed the movement with her eyes and took hold of Bedelia's wrist.

"What is it now?" she whispered.

"Murdoc brought his pet raven Cortez along," Bedelia explained, "My other guest, so to speak."

"Tell me, Sweetie, are you really serious with Mr. Green-skin Snaggle-tooth here?" Maureen asked.

"What do you think, Dear?" Bedelia shot back.

"Della, he's a fucking celebrity," Maureen added, watching Murdoc offering his arm to the raven and coming back, "He'll take all you can give and crumble your heart if he feels like."

"Look who's talking! You had your share of weird guys, too. Remember Edgar? The old geezer you went so nuts over? I never saw why you fell for him."

Maureen cast her eyes down to look at her pale and delicate hands with trimmed nails polished in a dark purple she had borrowed from Bedelia months ago. Then, a sigh escaped her.

"Sorry," she said, "If this guy really can make you as happy as I think he can, fine with me. Just be careful, okay? Remember Winston. I've seen it – music men are like gamblers, just that music rules their lifes. So, please be careful." The woman with the two-tone hair hugged her friend.

"What's with the fairy cakes?" Murdoc spoke up when the friends released again and Bedelia had seated. When Bedelia and Maureen frowned in confusion, he flicked his index finger against the plate of muffins.

"Pina Colada muffins to go with the coffee," Bedelia explained, "Maureen's favourite. I always keep the ingredients at hand, just in case she'd drop in."

"Pina Colada sounds great, luv." Murdoc picked one of the small cakes, taking a bite and chewing pensively. When the sweetness of pineapple, coconut and cream, combined with the familiar taste of white rum hit his taste bulbs, he smiled. Cortez tilted his head and gave a low cawing as if to say, "Don't you forget about poor little me! Sooo hungry..." The bassist broke a second piece from the muffin and held it out to the raven who snatched it off the palm and gobbled it down, giving a satisfied cawing. Then, the bird went to perch on the back of Bedelia's chair. Slowly, he leaned forward to wipe his beak against her shoulder.

"Proven delicious, my lovely," Murdoc said, taking Bedelia's hand and running his thumb across the back.

"Thanks, Cortez. Glad you like them," Bedelia said, turning around and running her finger along the feathers on the raven's chest, gently smoothing them. Maureen blinked in surprise when the bird not only permitted the touch but leaned forward, gently nudging Bedelia's shoulder in return. Then, he moved onto Murdoc's shoulder.

The conversation among the bassist, Bedelia and her best friend, interrupted by Cortez' occasional caws who had moved onto the back of an unoccupied chair, went on until Bedelia noticed the ashtray almost brimming over. As soon as she had left the room, Murdoc leaned in close to Maureen, resting his left hand on his left thigh and his chin on the back of his right hand, one of his own cigarettes propped between his lips to look Maureen dead in the eyes. Cortez gave another low caw, leaning in close as well. Maureen blinked in surprise when she found herself watched by two pairs of piercing eyes.

"Say, what do you hate most about me?" the bassist asked, his cigarette's blaze going up and down like a dancing firefly, causing little fluffs of ash to spread on the table. The bassist brushed them off with a wave of his hand and looked around for something he could use as a substitute ashtray. Finally, he settled for the tiny red cup that had been left.

"What makes you think so?" Maureen held Murdoc's gaze innocently until a broad smile crept into the bassist's face, releasing a whisp of smoke and baring his back teeth for a moment. She blinked when Cortez opened and closed his beak as if yawning.

"Oh, come on! I've seen this face before," Murdoc said, taking the cigarette from his lips with his left hand to tip off ash into the cup and making eye contact again, "Your first glance said _Hello_ , and your second one said _You bloody wanker_. And I heard what you said about music men, taking all and crushing hearts." He added a low growl for emphasis. Cortez cawed again, low but most insistently.

"I just care about Della. Frankly, you're her first music man, and she's one of those girls having a soft spot for _And they lived happily ever after_ ," Maureen said after her eyes darting at the raven and the inverted golden cross dangling in front of Murdoc's chest, "I don't want her to be hurt or something."

"Most girls are brimming with romance, I guess," the bassist explained, another smile creeping across his face, "Now, I'll tell you everything you need to know about me. So listen closely. I come from a rotten family that's notorious all over the town where I was born. I'm a Satanist who shook hands with the devil and saw hell with his own eyes. And yes, I am a true music man. I make good money with what I like to do, and I feel good being with Della. She's very good company and much fun among the sheets. All in all, your friend's the most interesting girl I ever met."

Maureen gave a sigh of relief, breaking the eye contact and saying good-bye to Bedelia, Murdoc and Cortez.

"Your friend is okay, luv," Murdoc said when Maureen had left in the early evening and the pair was relaxing on the couch, "How did you meet?"

"We met after a concert of a real good _RAMONES_ cover band. The singer looked and sounded as if Joey Ramone had risen from the grave. It was amazing." Bedelia smiled at the bassist having put his head on her lap once again. She slipped her hand into the neck of his sweater, gently ruffling his chest hair.

"But it seems I'm not the first music man she runs across," Murdoc summed up the talk between him and Maureen, sitting up and slowly taking off his sweater.

"She had a thing for a drummer a few years ago. They were seeing each other for about a year on irregular basis, and it didn't end too well," Bedelia explained, her voice carrying slight confusion, "Why you're asking?"

"She called me your first music man, and she used the term _four-stringer_ , a word mostly used by other music people," Murdoc said, unable to hide a smile, "And she said she don't want you to be hurt." He dropped the sweater on the back of the couch to put his head on her lap again.

"It's true. I never got to be with a musician before. Or any other famous man, speaking of it." Bedelia sighed.

"You're worried?" Murdoc was surprised. Slowly, his hand crept up her front to caress her cheek.

"A bit," she confessed, "I mean, a man as famous as you are can have lots of girls much younger and prettier than me, and I was taught soon enough that I'm just a mulatto girl, nothing to shout about."

The bassist sat up, putting his arm around her shoulders and cupping her face to make her look at him.

"Don't you say so. Remember how we met?" he said, leaning his forehead against hers. Bedelia hummed her agreements.

"Remember the birds hanging around?" the bassist continued, taking her hand and entwining their fingers. Again, Bedelia agreed.

"I could have made each of them follow me like a puppy with a click of my fingers," the bassist said in a low voice, "But I settled for you – a black diamond in the rough, if you pardon my saying so." A smile crept into the bassist's face.

"A black diamond?" Bedelia was surprised.

"One of the rarest gems there is," Murdoc explained, gently kissing her cheek. Bedelia returned the kiss, whispering a thank-you. Smiling to himself, the bassist pulled her tighter against him, trailing soft kisses all over her forehead, cheeks and throat down to her breastbone.

"And that's just the way I see you, my dirty-sweet girl," he added, pulling her into a deep kiss, "Besides, I was told recently you're no average girl."

"Who said so, my sexy beast?" Bedelia whispered before their mouths connected.

"The old pal who gave me the medicine," Murdoc said before claiming her lips, running his knuckles along her cheek. While kissing her, he considered explaining what he had done to help her, not sure about Bedelia's reaction. Her religion hadn't been mentioned so far but Murdoc was positive she had been raised with faith in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, just like everybody else. But on the other hand, considering her asking him about hell, she really might understand.

Temptation, temptation... Murdoc gave in.

"On this one night, when you didn't feel good, I thought I'd lose you," he started when their mouths parted, "Thus, I summoned up a demon for help."

"Demon?" Bedelia repeated, her eyes widening, "You made a deal with the devil for my sake?" Murdoc nodded before he shrugged.

"Not with the Old Fella... Lucifer showed up," he explained, "He gave me the medicine."

"A quite careless thing to do," Bedelia said, wiping her lips with her thumb.

"It's not a first." The bassist shrugged again, whispering against her skin, "I just didn't have the heart to see you suffer so much, and all I knew was that you needed help, and quick. The colour of your face gave me the willies."

"But what about the... the price?" Bedelia asked.

"Price?"

"Those deals are said to come along with a high price to pay, or so I heard," she said, "But considering the things you have seen I guess you're aware of this, too."

"Lucifer and I came to an agreement," Murdoc said after thinking for a minute, "We know each other quite well by now. As you said, I made some friends in low places." A kind of proud grin spread on the bassist's face before he pecked her cheek.

"Say, how about a movie?" Bedelia said after just smiling to herself a few minutes.

"I'm not really a big fan of the goggle box," Murdoc said, the ghost of a smile touching his mouth, "Most on it is merely crap. But what kind of movie we're talking about?" Bedelia smiled to herself before saying, " _Rosemary's Baby_ should be on in a few minutes. Haven't seen it in years."

"Not a bad pick," the bassist said, looking around for the remote control and switching the TV on to search the channel. Bedelia smiled and snuggled closer against the bassist's chest when the unmistakable theme song was heard, bloodcurdling in its eerily sweet serenity. She closed her eyes and smiled when the bassist pulled her into a tight embrace, his breath brushing her ear and making her temple hair tickle her skin.

"Wouldn't have thought you'd like this movie," the bassist whispered after the dream-like rape/procreation sequence. Bedelia took hold of his hand cupping her breast, gently rubbed the back and said, "Well... I never got to tell people – except for Maureen, of course." She laid down to put her head on his lap and raised the hand to her mouth, kissing each phalanx, up to the nails. The bassist couldn't help smiling.

"Speaking of it, luv," he said after a short debate with himself, "Do you believe in... you know... God and such?"

"I was brought up a Protestant but a few years ago, I came to believe in Higher Powers, no matter what side they act from," Bedelia explained, "Everything's eventual, ain't it?" Murdoc ran his fingers through her hair, gently caressing the skin behind her ear.

"Where have you been so long, my dirty-sweet girl?" he whispered, chuckling softly to himself, "I know it's a fucking corny thing to say but I... well... I never felt like this before." Bedelia smiled in response, kissing his pulse and making their fingers entwine before she snuggled closer against his crotch. Both returned their attention to the movie. Bedelia heard Murdoc's breath quicken whenever something of the spooky variety was mentioned or seen on the screen, like the baby's black cradle, decorated with a black veil and a black inverted cross.

Little by little, the capricious weather having ruled the month of April and the first few days of May cleared up. With the sun getting warmer, Murdoc had suggested to spend the evenings outside. Bedelia had searched her cellar for a couple of chairs to sit outside, and finally, she had found a pair of wooden beach lounge chairs and a matching fold-up table, still folded up and wrapped in plastic. Obviously, the previous owner of the house had never gotten the chance to use them. Together, Murdoc and Bedelia carried the chairs and the table up the stairs on the flat metal roof of the tower and unfolded them. When it was done, the bassist flopped himself onto the chair he had unfolded, taking a deep breath and lacing his hands behind his head. Smiling at this explicit demonstration of leisure, Bedelia went downstairs to get them a drink. She returned with a short blossom-shaped glass of absinthe mixed up with iced water and a dash of sugar as well as an octogonal collins glass of non-alcoholic Pina Colada drink she had used to bake the muffins for her friend in her hands.

"Cheers," she said, handing him the absinthe.

"To us, my lovely." The bassist clicked his glass against hers and smiled in respond before he took a sip. Then, he put the glass onto the table and took hold of her hand. Bedelia put her glass onto the table as well and slouched back into her chair. She smiled when Murdoc hauled himself off his chair, sitting on the edge of hers. A meaningful smile crept into his face as he bent across her and lowered himself on his elbows on either side of her shoulders for a kiss. This time, he sucked at her lower lip before letting his tongue slip into her mouth. A sigh escaped both of them when the sweetness of pineapple and coconut met the bitter sweetness of absinthe.

The kiss which Bedelia wished to last forever was interrupted when a gasp of cool wind announced the night beginning to cover the dark-red sunset.

"Let's go in," the bassist suggested as their mouths parted. He straightened up, picking up his glass to take a longer gulp.

"Hungry?" Bedelia asked.

"I think I could do with a bite," Murdoc confessed.

"Then I shall entertain my sexy beast acceptably," she proclaimed, getting up to pick up her glass and make her way into the kitchen. Curiously, the bassist followed.

"Say, luv..." he said when they had entered the kitchen.

"What?" Bedelia answered, searching the cabinets for a big sauce pan, a can of corned beef, a can of corn, a small onion, a few tomatoes, a small ceramic pot of garlic-flavoured salt and a pack of bacon bits. Then, she turned around to face Murdoc whose body had squeezed hers against the counter next to the stove in the middle of the room, his hands put on either side of her.

"What do you mean by _acceptably_?" he asked, leaning his forehead against hers.

"Just that you deserve a real good meal, being my guest and all," Bedelia explained, turning around again to dice the corned beef, the onion and the tomatoes. She freed herself from Murdoc's grip to add the onion and the bacon bits into the pot and put the pot onto the burner. The bassist grinned, resting his chin on her shoulder when she stood in front of him again.

"Well, thank you, my lovely," he whispered. He couldn't help smiling when his breath against her ear made her jump and shudder. The sizzling sound of frying bacon interrupted the moment. Bedelia returned her attention at the pot, adding a spoonful of concentrated butter stirring the bacon and the onion with a wooden spoon to keep bacon and onion from darkening too much. When the fat was melted, she added the corned beef and a pinch of the garlic-flavoured salt. When the corned beef had melted into a creamy stew, she added the can of corn and reduced the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally.

"Hhmmm..." Murdoc said, cherishing the scent from the pot that became more intense the longer the one-pot dish was cooking. Bedelia picked up a spoon to taste it. Being content, she held out another spoonful to Murdoc. The bassist's respond was a hum of approval, pressing tighter against her.

"Like it?" she asked.

"Yup. It's a bit like Irish Stew without the cole and spuds. If you don't mind, I'll set the table." Slowly running his hands up and down her hips and thighs, Murdoc released her and went through the cabinets for dishes and silverware.

"Kitchen or Living?" he asked, putting all onto a tray.

"Kitchen." Bedelia went to get the beverages and the ice-balls from the living-room. When she came back, the table in the corner was set except for two soup plates waiting on the counter next to the stove. Murdoc sat on a chair, propped up on one elbow with his chin resting on his hand and an unreadable smile sitting on his face.

"Say, luv, what do you call this bloody marvellous meat pot?" he asked.

"It doesn't have a name, actually," Bedelia said, looking into the pot, pulling it off the burner and stirring again carefully, "I created it a few years ago from left-overs. But _bloody marvellous meat pot_ sounds like a good name." She filled Murdoc's plate and placed it in front of him.

"Enjoy," she said, filling her own soup plate and sitting down herself.

"You really created this all by yourself?" Murdoc asked between two bites. Smiling proudly, Bedelia nodded.

"Very well done!" The bassist patted her shoulder before pulling her into a kiss.

"Thank you, my sexy beast," she said, "I'll have you know, you're the first one who gets to eat this. Maureen just knows I made a smash-up meal once. I'm so glad it passed the test." Bedelia closed her eyes and smiled. Suddenly, she jumped up and went into the hall. When she came back and sat down again, a small black box sat in her hand.

"Here's a little something for you," she said, pushing the box across the table. The bassist looked at the box, hesitatingly taking and turning it in his hands. Then, he opened it, revealing a key made of black-painted metal on a silver ring with a tiny metal bass guitar attached to. He took it out, slipping his thumb through the ring and wrapping his fingers around the key and the pendant.

"This is nice. Thank you," he said, getting up to sit astraddle on her lap and rest his lower arms on her shoulders.

"Glad you like it." Bedelia wrapped her arms around his ribcage to hold him steady since he turned out to be heavier than he looked.

"It's a key to my house," she then explained, "I got the idea of giving you a retreat to come to anytime you need a break from your job and such."

"This is the most useful thing not related to music someone ever gave me," Murdoc chuckled to himself, slowly and gently running the nail of his index finger up and down her nape, "Be careful – you're gonna spoil me!"

"Spoil you?" Bedelia's jaw dropped. The bassist gently pushed her jaw close with his index finger and sealed her lips with a deep kiss.

"I don't mean to spoil you," Bedelia said when their lips and tongues parted, "Just trying to get even with the wonderful way you treat me, my sexy beast. I'm so glad I went into that bar and met you." Murdoc leaned in close to kiss her cheek and lips.

"You're really wonderful," he then whispered, "I never met a girl like you before." Murdoc leaned his forehead against hers to lock his eyes with hers and frowned slightly when he noticed a hint of doubt dawning in her eyes. Slowly, Bedelia closed her eyes to get her words in order.

"This key means you're always welcome at my place," she said, "Drop in whenever you feel like. No matter if day or night." Murdoc had to struggle to keep his jaw from dropping. He put his arms around her neck, pulling her in a very passionate kiss of relief.

"Thank you, my lovely," he whispered when their mouths parted again.

"You're most welcome," Bedelia whispered back. The bassist smiled at her when he realized that even when he had to leave again soon there was a possibility to come back. A possibility to spend some time, not to mention his upcoming birthday, in selected company and far from Kong Studios.

Two and a half nerve-wrecking weeks of band rehearsal later, in an early June night, Murdoc paced his Winnebago, just wearing his underpants and his boots, unable to sleep. Cortez who perched on the steering wheel watched this with his head tilted to the side until the bassist sat down on his bed, donning jeans with a random shirt. Cortez grabbed the keys from the ignition, flew over to Murdoc, and dropped the keys next to the bassist before he perched on the back of a near-by seat.

"Thanks, mate," Murdoc said and went for his Camaro. Cortez followed suit. Murdoc took a deep breath, looking at the little bass guitar attached to the key to Bedelia's house while Cortez perched on the back of the passenger's seat. The Camaro's engine roared to life with a thunderous belch as soon as Murdoc tapped the gas, heading out to the highway toward Mesquite city limits. The stress faded away the longer he listened to the engine's powerful roar.

Murdoc stepped on the breakes as soon as he could see the tower attached to Bedelia's house in the distance. A sigh of pleasure escaped him when the car came to a halt in front of the house. He pulled the car key from the ignition, searched for the house key, and went for the door while Cortez went to perch on a near-by tree. His steps echoed through the silence of the house as the bassist ascended the stairs, wincing at every creak until he stood in front of the bedroom door, inching it open and peeking into the room. The silvery moonlight enlightened the room so he could see Bedelia's body form dressed in some sleeveless black night wear underneath the light gray cover. He crept to the bed to sit down and lean in close to run his hand over her hair now being the shortest hair he had ever seen on a woman, feeling like an odd and very soft brush against his hand and glistening softly in the moonlight. Bedelia whispered something he couldn't understand and opened her eyes. She rolled over and sat up, her eyes shining like black pearls.

"Welcome back, my sexy beast," she said, looking him over.

"Hello there, my dirty-sweet girl," Murdoc whispered back, kissing her forehead and running his hand over her hair again.

"Climb aboard," Bedelia invited, cupping his nape and pulling him close enough to make their noses brush.

"Be with you in a minute." The bassist freed himself from her grip and took off his boots and jeans before he shed his shirt and pushed his boots out of sight. Undressing as well, Bedelia watched him slipping underneath the cover and scooting close against her. A sigh of pleasure escaped her when she felt the touch of his calloused hands gently squeezing her buttocks and moving slowly towards her valley. A few pokes against her clit heated up her juices, making her become moist within seconds.

"So nice of you to drop in, my sexy beast," she whispered hoarsely, shifting her legs to give more room to his middle finger sliding into her hole. The friction of his nail against her inner flesh made her smile. She flexed her vaginal muscles in respond, gripping his finger tight. A gasp escaped Murdoc when the muscles fit like a glove around his finger. He ran the tip of his tongue up and down her nape and top spine, making her shiver and release her grip.

"Wow... Really nice..." the bassist whispered, pulling his finger back and touching her clit once again.

"Just a hint how much I missed you," Bedelia whispered back, rolling over to face him.

"Thanks, my dirty-sweet girl," Murdoc answered, "Missed you, too." Bedelia cupped his nape and pulled him close to kiss him. When their mouths parted, they drifted off to sleep for a few hours. Bedelia woke up when the warmth of Murdoc's breathings against her nape suddenly had stopped. She rolled over to see him sitting upright with his knees pulled tight against his chest and his arms wrapped around. His chin rested on his knees. The dawn filled the room with reddish light making his skin look brownish.

"Hey!" she whispered, running a hand along his thigh, "What is it?" Murdoc gave an indifferent sound before he said, "Can't sleep anymore. Sorry for waking you up."

"Did not." Bedelia smiled at him, patting his hip, "Now, why so glum this morning?"

"Well... if you insist to hear... Today is my birthday, and I just came to realize that I might be the last of the Niccals Clan. If I'd drop dead tomorrow, our family tree might be unrooted," the bassist explained almost in one breath.

"What do you mean by you _might_ be the last?" Bedelia frowned.

"Well... my old man died when I was in my early thirties or so, and only Satan knows where my sodding brother did get stuck," the bassist explained hesitatingly, avoiding eye contact, "But as far as I'm concerned, Hannibal can rot in the most wretched prison at the end of the world. Word has it that my old man had fathered more children but that has never been proven – at least not to my knowledge."

Bedelia sat up as well and gently rubbed his shoulder-blade. It nearly broke her heart to see him looking low-spirited like this. Nonetheless, she was flattered that he was willing to disburden his heart to her. Thus, she thought of a way to cheer him up. She ran the back of her hand along his biceps, then leaned in close to plant a kiss on his shoulder, hitting the black-and-white cross tattoo. Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind.

"What'll it be for breakfast?" she asked. Murdoc looked at her in slight confusion at the sudden change of subject.

"Free choice," she said, smiling at him, "I can imagine you don't really feel like celebrating. But that doesn't mean you'd have to do without a good bite to eat, does it?"

"You've got a point there," the bassist had to admit. He straightened up to lean against the padded head part of the bed, closing his eyes and rubbing the stubbles on his chin.

"Well... if it's free choice... I feel like having an egg-and-bacon-sandwich with tabasco... one coffee with Irish tuning... oh, and pancakes would be nice," he said and folded his hands behind his head, the ghost of a smile touching the corners of his mouth.

"Then this it's gonna be. You wait here. Won't be long," Bedelia answered, kissing his cheek, put on a white silk dressing gown adorned with black twigs and went into the kitchen. She turned on the coffee-maker before she mixed up buckwheat flour and wheat flour with a dash of salt in a big bowl, added two chicken eggs and stirred until a smooth dough had formed. Then, she added enough milk to thin down the dough to the consistence of liquid cream. She put the bowl aside, set the table and searched her fridge for bacon. She put the bacon slices into a pan, forming a criss-cross pattern. When the bacon started sizzling, she added a small piece of concentrated butter since there was just a small amount of goose fat left and a scoopful of dough and tilted the pan, forming a flat pancake. The mouth-watering scent of bacon and dough mingled with the scent of the melted concentrated butter filled the air for minutes. Bedelia smiled and carefully flipped the pancake over. A minute later, she heard foot steps descend the stairs. Murdoc poked his head into the kitchen and inhaled deeply.

"This smells wonderful," he said, approaching Bedelia, putting his hands on either side of her and snuggling close against her back. Bedelia cut a piece off the pancake and held it out over her shoulder. The long sound of pleasure emerging from Murdoc's throat made her smile again.

"No regular pancakes today," the bassist stated, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Nope. It's a receipt for bacon-pancakes I ran across a few days ago. And since you like bacon, I thought them to make a perfect birthday breakfast."

"Not a bad choice," the bassist chuckled to himself, savouring the scent of frying bacon and the touch of Bedelia's back against his front. When Bedelia had cooked a heap of bacon-pancakes, she turned around to plant a kiss onto his chest. She ducked to slide through the gap between his arm and his rib-cage and get the coffee. On her way back to the stove she gently ran a hand over his buttocks, making the bassist suck in his breath sharply and sitting down at the table. She picked up the plate of pancakes and placed it on the table. Then, she got a fresh small bottle of whiskey and a bottle of tabasco from the fridge.

"Enjoy," she said, sitting down and pouring coffee to the milk in her cup.

"Now, here is my present to you," Bedelia said when breakfast was finished. She pulled a folded envelope from the gown's pocket and pushed it towards the bassist who opened it hesitatingly, revealing two 50 Dollar bills and two 5 Dollar bills.

"What's this about?" he wondered. Smiling, Bedelia explained, "I want you to have a real good time today. Since _Sin City_ is so close – that's our nickname for Las Vegas –, I want you to go there and do whatever you feel like."

"Whatever I feel like?" Murdoc had to swallow hard at this carte blanche offer.

"Have a ball," Bedelia assured, patting his elbow, "But if you happen to find a roulette table, please place this money on _Black_ for me and let it sit for 13 rounds or until I lose – whatever comes first." She smiled.

"As you wish, my dirty-sweet girl." Murdoc got up and leaned in close to claim her lips for a soft yet firm kiss, a sign of how amazed he was. In fact, the bassist started to feel like a kid to be locked up overnight in a candy store. When their lips and tongues parted, he went upstairs for a quick cleanup – after all, he was up for a prowl to the most famous and biggest jungle of fun and games known to mankind – and got dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans and the black military jacket for a shirt. While bottening the jacket and donning his boots, he started humming "Welcome to the jungle" from Guns'n'Roses, a song that had accompanied most of his youth. He looked himself over in the mirror, grinning at the gleam set into his eyes.

"Well then," he said to his reflection, running his hand through his fringe, "Let's go." Leaning against the kitchen door frame, Bedelia looked at him descending the stairs.

"Have fun, my sexy beast," she whispered.

Three days of doing house chores, trimming and repolishing her nails – with a milky polish with colourful glitter that turned white in sunlight this time – and grocery shopping later, at a quarter to eleven in the evening, Bedelia sat up in bed when she heard a key unlocking her door, followed by unsteady steps and choked hiccups. She rubbed her eyes and went to see. Murdoc sat at the kitchen table with his chin rested on his hands, chuckling to himself between the hiccups. Bedelia turned on the prepared coffee-maker, poured two earless cups of coffee, one with a quarter teaspoon of brown sugar, one with lots of milk, and sat down at the table as well.

"Hey!" she said, patting his elbow, "I guess you were having fun." Focussing on her and the cup of coffee, Murdoc straightened up, nodded, carefully stirred his coffee and took a long gulp. Bedelia waited until his gaze grew steady and asked, "What happened?"

"Well... First thing I found was a roulette table, and after 13 rounds, I found this," Murdoc said, pulling an envelope from his pocket and pushing it towards Bedelia. Then, he propped himself up on his elbows, resting his chin on his hands like a school boy and watched her open it to look inside, gasp and quickly thumb the bills to count the money. It turned out to be 13.000 Dollars.

"Nice side effect," she said, getting up and leaning in close to kiss his temple. Murdoc closed his eyes, cherishing her lips touching his skin.

"Met anyone interesting?" she then wondered. Murdoc flopped back in his chair, nodding his agreements and taking another gulp of coffee.

"Yup, two of the weirdest guys on a road trip. John and Ben, a reporter and his lawyer-friend with a baby whore in tow. Ben wanted to share her with John and me, but we din't feel like – if she was old enough to drive, I'll eat my hat. Ben then invited me to the strongest drink I ever had. Couldn't make out much more than whiskey and gin with a dash of cinnamon. Delicious as hell. They called it _Pangalac_... whatever." Another chuckle escaped him while he cupped his cup with both hands as if feeling cold.

" _Pangalactic Gargleblaster_?" Bedelia asked, carefully pronouncing every syllable.

"I guess so. How come you know that one?" the bassist wondered, his voice carrying the frown hidden by his fringe. He looked at her expectantly, taking another sip of coffee.

"It's a drink from a book and movie. It's described to be the strongest drink in the universe, making you feel like having smashed your brains out with a gold bar wrapped in lemon slices when sobering up." Murdoc closed his eyes halfways before a smile crept into his face.

"Well then, I can't wait for that experience," he sighed, hiccupping again and taking another quick sip of coffee before asking for a refill.

"How much did you have?" Bedelia got up to get the pitcher.

"I had my share," was all the bassist would say.

"And there was something else Ben gave us to try when he found us a hotel room," he then added, "Some liquid called _adreno_... something. It had a... really special effect to it." Murdoc shuddered involuntary at the recollection.

"Was it adrenochrome?" Bedelia asked, carefully pronouncing every syllable of the word in question again. Murdoc just could nod.

"How do you know?" he wondered again, deeply impressed.

"My last boyfriend was heavy into drug movies. This stuff, a liquid produced by the adrenal glands, was mentioned in the third or forth movie he showed me," Bedelia explained, gently patting the bassist's thigh.

"Today I spent recovering," Murdoc continued, "I din't want to come back waisted." He sighed deeply.

"Wouldn't have minded," Bedelia assured, "I told you to have fun, remember? And frankly spoken, I didn't really expect you to come back sober." A smile crept across the bassist's face.

"Somewhen before sunrise, John, Ben and me had to sneak out of the hotel room – it looked like a raped and severely mutilated corpse. Only Satan knows what the guys did to this room when they were up with the pixies. I walked around and finally found a place to get some rest – a small chapel in a back road. I sat down in the back row to get some shut-eye – successfully, until a wedding was held. Between you and me and the wall, it was the funniest wedding ceremony I've ever been to. She was a blonde bombshell with the worst makeup and the sluttiest wedding dress I've ever seen, and he was past his nineties, I guess." The bassist wiped his mouth, shaking with silent laughter. It took him minutes to talk on.

"All went according to plan until the _speak now or hold your_ _peace_ _forever_ -part," he continued when he had gotten a grip, "I couldn't believe when the groom cleared his throat and said he'd rather die than marry a slutty waitress from a crummy backstreet diner. A second later he fell down on his back and was pronounced dead." Again, the bassist was shaking with silent laughter.

Adding another dash of eggshell-white half-and-half to her own coffee, Bedelia had to admit this was funny indeed. A small giggle escaped her before she took another sip of coffee.

"After this, I went back into the place where I met John and Ben first, wanting another one of those drinks to feel better," the bassist finished his tale.

"I assume they were there," Bedelia said, sipping her coffee again.

"You assume right." A sly grin crept into the bassist's face as he ran his hand along her arm and shoulder to pull her close and claim her lips. Bedelia raised her eyebrows when the mingled taste of chilled whiskey, chilled gin and cinnamon, along with the strong taste of black, lightly sugared coffee, hit her taste bulbs. Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind. She pulled back and leaned her forehead against Murdoc's to look into his eyes.

"By the way, my sexy beast, have you eaten enough?" she wondered. Slowly, her hand crept down his front to caress his belly. The bassist shrugged.

"Now that you mention it... I think I could do with a bite," he whispered as if being embarrassed.

"How about Egg In A Basket?" Bedelia smiled.

"Sounds great. Haven't eaten this in years." Murdoc smiled back. Bedelia kissed his cheek, nudged his nose with hers and got up, turning her attention to the cabinets and searching for kitchen tools and ingredients. Murdoc watched her bringing all to the workplace next to the stove, cutting holes into slices of toast using one of her octagonal glasses. She put a teaspoon of concentrated butter into a pan and placed the toast slices and the cut-out pieces into the melted fat. When the bread was fried golden-brown, she cracked one chicken egg into each hole, salting and peppering the egg and frying the toast until the egg had become solid. Being content with the result, she carefully flipped it over to fry and season the backside as well. Finally, she put two pieces on a plate, covering each egg with a crispy bread piece, and placed the plate in front of the bassist, along with a bottle of tabasco.

Murdoc lifted the bread pieces to look at the eggs surrounded by the crisp toast, spread a few drops of tabasco across the egg and took the first into one hand, inhaling deeply and taking a bite. The flavour of the spiced egg and toast, intensed by the tabasco, made him smile broadly. When he had eaten, he carefully licked his lips and stiffled a belch with the back of his hand – much to Bedelia's amusement. Then, he flopped back in his chair, rubbing his belly.

"Better?" Bedelia asked, frying some plain toast in the pan for herself. The bassist hummed in agreement, getting up to snuggle against her back. He ran his hands over her hips and thighs and kissed her nape. Bedelia smiled when his hot breath brushed her skin and the short hair covering the back of her head. He slipped his hands beneath her gown to cup one of her breasts and her crotch.

"That was the best gift I've gotten in years," he whispered, kissing her cheek. A small gasp escaped Bedelia when his heel of hand pressed against her clit, rubbing it through her clothes. Simultanously, his fingertips rubbed her breast in small circles, hardening the nipple. Bedelia smiled when she felt an erection coming up against her back.

"Let's go upstairs," she suggested, finishing the toast and pulling the pan off the burner before gently taking his hand off her crotch and making their fingers entwine. Murdoc drained his cup of coffee and followed her. When they had reached the bedroom, Bedelia stood up on her toes and pulled him into a hug. Murdoc leaned in close to claim her lips. A passionate sigh escaped her when the bulge of his erection rubbed against her belly. She ran her hands down his back to give his buttocks a gentle squeeze. The bassist groped for the hem of her hip-long pajama top, feeling for her breasts. Bedelia caressed his back and felt for the door-handle with her free hand. Step by step, the pair entered the room, trying not to break contact. Finally, they plopped down on the bed, parting their mouths. Murdoc stood up on his hands and knees and smiled down at Bedelia who took off her dressing gown and her pajamas. When just her black underpants were left, he bent down and tugged at the cotton fabric with his teeth. Bedelia shivered involuntarily when his breath simultanously brushed her lower belly and pubic hair that had grown back into thick curls. She smiled to herself when the bassist had taken off her underpants without tearing and opened her arms for him. Murdoc lowered himself on top of her to his elbows, claiming her lips again while the tip of his rod poked her hole. Bedelia curled her fingers into his hair and gave a deep-throated moaning when his rod pushed its way in, throbbing against her inner flesh in its climax.

About half an hour of passionate love-making later, Murdoc was unable to ignore the gnawing hunger suddenly hitting him. He took his arm off Bedelia, inching away from the comforting warmth of her skin. He put on his underpants, his jeans and a white undershirt with his boots before creeping into the kitchen to go through the cabinets for a snack. He froze to the spot when he heard a gruff voice sing from one of the top cabinets. It was no tune Murdoc could place but hearing the way too familiar voice sent an icy shiver up and down his spine, rattling his bones like a xylophone. He worked up the courage to open the cabinet where the singing was heard and shrank back when he saw the head and shoulders of his father sitting among the black tableware. Appalled, the bassist groped for the nearest chair and pulled it close to sit down astraddle, unable to tear his eyes from the face bearing the familiar steel trap grin as well as the coldhearted, disdainful gleam in the blod-shot eyes beneath the mildewed rim of the top hat.

"Hey, boy," Jacob Niccals said cheerfully, "How you doing?"

"Good until a minute ago," Murdoc hissed back, squaring his shoulders, "What do you want?"

"Word got around that you are with a woman now meaning a lot to you." Jacob's grin faded a bit as he looked Murdoc straight in the eye.

"How can word get around to a dead man?" the bassist replied under his breath. He blinked in surprise when Jacob's face began to melt away, revieling Lucifer's features.

"Well, hello there," the fallen angel greeted, emerging from the cabinet as soon as his body had formed from the shadows. This time, he was dressed in a light gray hooded sweater jacket with a pair of dark blue jeans; the sweater's zipper was open down to the middle of his bare chest.

"Oh, I'll be damned. Hey, Lu," Murdoc sighed deeply, "Any particular reason why you're here?"

"Just wanted to see if it's true that you're still with the girl you asked me to save." The fallen angel shrugged.

"What if so?" Murdoc grumbled. Lucifer stepped up to grab the bassist's upper arms and pull him close enough to look him dead in the eyes. The strong grip made Murdoc gasp and blink.

"And what was it about showing up as my sodding father?" he then managed to ask.

"Just thought you'd feel better with a familiar face to see," Lucifer said innocently, releasing the bassist.

"Not excactly a face worth missing," Murdoc sighed, slowly sitting down again, "What in Satan's name were you thinking, Lu?"

"Obviously wrong," the fallen angel said, patting Murdoc's arm, "Your father died half an eternity ago, and... well... sometimes people forget..."

"Well, I did not!" Murdoc growled, crossing his arms, "Sebastian Jacob Niccals was a useless bag of bones in life, and I'm pretty sure dying din't improve him. As far as I'm concerned, he can rot in the tightest metal box chained to the core of the sun."

"Nice idea," Lucifer said, rubbing his chin, "Sorry for offending you. It's just that the moon is full, and I decided to call. So, you're really still with this girl?"

"Her name is Bedelia, and yup, we're still together. Or should I say I'm with her. This is her place." A faint gleam dawned in the bassist's mismatched eyes.

"I can see it's not your prized love-shack on wheels. Can't believe I'm saying this... you love her, don't you?" Lucifer leaned in close enough to brush his nose against Murdoc's.

"I called you to save her, din't I?" Murdoc answered, holding the fallen angel's gaze. Lucifer thought this over for a minute before he nodded and asked, "And she knows?"

"She knows," Murdoc said, "I told her, and she understands."

"Thought so," the fallen angel said as if speaking to himself, "I could sense she has an unusual point of view on her."

"She has," the bassist agreed, feeling fatigue wash through him. He hid a sudden yawn behind the back of his hand, closing his eyes doing so. When he opened his eyes again, the fallen angel had vanished into thin air. The only clue for the flying visit was the mildewed top hat still sitting among the tableware. Murdoc sighed, closing the cabinet and turning his attention to feeding himself. He looked at the toast slices Bedelia hadn't eaten and turned his attention towards the fridge. He found an opened screw top jar of small sausages in broth and a few bottles of beer and took both to drain in minutes' time, making his borborygmus go by with every bite and sip. When all was emptied, the bassist flopped back in his seat, rubbing his pot belly. A satisfied belch not unlike the starting sound of his Camaro escaped him as he went back to the bedroom. He undressed when he had entered the room and crept back in bed, snuggling close against Bedelia's body.

"You okay?" she asked when his breath touched her neck.

"All good," Murdoc answered, "Just had to eat a bite." Bedelia took his hand, kissing his knuckles.

"Thought I heard you talk to somebody," she whispered. The bassist hesitated for a moment before he said, "Just an old pal who decided to drop in."

"Old pal being Lucifer, right?" Bedelia rolled over to face him. Murdoc nodded his agreements, protectively wrapping his hand around hers.

"Why did he come to my place?" Bedelia asked after a few minutes of steady eye contact.

"Just checking on me, he said," the bassist explained, still holding her gaze and seeing the unspoken question if there was a reason to be worried dawning in the black beady eyes. It made his heart skip a beat.

"I don't think he'll be back," Murdoc said, gently running the knuckles of his free hand across her cheek and gently rubbing her earlobe between thumb and index finger. It was a half-truth making his stomach clench but he didn't know what else to say. Bedelia gave a soft sigh of relief and closed her eyes. Murdoc took a deep breath and closed his eyes as well, hoping to get some sleep. But it took him hours to find rest since he was confident that Lucifer was capable of coming back when Bedelia was alone again when the bassist had to go back to work which was to be in about two weeks. The mere thought gave Murdoc the creeps. He put his arm around Bedelia, pulling her closer until he felt her head rest on his biceps and her warm breath break on his collarbone. He pulled her arm over his torso to pull her tighter against him. A smile crept into his face when he felt her fingertips trace sleepy patterns across his back. At first, the tingly sensation made him frown a bit. On closer expection, he was miserably happy to feel the soft prickling. It reminded him of the comforting moment in the tub when Bedelia had washed his back. When the prickling suddenly stopped because Bedelia rolled onto her back, her hand moving onto his arm, he felt an urge to wake her up and ask her to go on. But one look at her peaceful face made him hold his tongue. He put his head back on the pillow, putting his arm around Bedelia again, pulling her against his ribcage. He ran his knuckles along her cheek again, took hold of her hand resting on his chest now and took a deep breath to fall asleep. A moment later, sleep took him to the land of Nod.

A few hours later, the sun streaming through the shutters and warming his face woke Murdoc up again. The warmth was followed by a soft yet firm grip and the very pleasant sensation of slightly cool air quickly warming up against his rod. He yawned heartily and rubbed his eyes. The sensation between his legs suggested that Bedelia tried to wake him up as gentle as possible. The bassist sat up, and carefully scooted against the padded head part of the bed to enjoy the wake-up call to the fullest. He lifted the cover and smiled at Bedelia's hand taking hold of his rod and her mouth wrapping around the head again. A string of low moans escaped him when she started sucking slightly, her teeth slowly and gently grazing the tip of the head. It took him just a few minutes more to climax in her mouth. Bedelia swallowed as much as she could in one gulp before she stood up on her knees and tilted her head back, slowly running her tongue along her slightly opened lips and pushing the blanket down her back. Murdoc looked her over, smiling at the white silk dressing gown opening to reveal the smooth brown skin of her lower belly and the dark brown thick curls beneath shimmering in a single sunbeam.

"That's my lovely," he said, noticing a few drops of her juices glistening amidst the curls like dewdrops. He smiled at this sight, commiting it to memory as his hand crept towards Bedelia who had knelt down within arms reach. A small gasp escaped her when his fingers crept up her inner thigh, his thumb gently wiping off the drops. Then, he carefully cleaned his thumb with the tip of his tongue as if eating a lollipop.

"Good morning," she said, smiling at him and lowering herself on her hands to creep up to him and lie down in his arm, snuggling against his ribcage, her hand gently ruffling his chest hair.

"Good morning," Murdoc whispered against her forehead, pulling her as close as possible and slipping his hand underneath her dressing gown to give her buttocks a gentle squeeze.

"Well, it's afternoon, actually." Bedelia smiled.

"Like I care. I just woke up." The bassist chuckled to himself.

"I know." Bedelia couldn't help laughing, too since his chuckle was amazingly different from his voice being rough-handled by drinking and smoking for years, maybe decades.

"How do you feel?" she then asked, rolling on her back and running her knuckles along his cheek. Surprised, the bassist arose on his elbow and bent across her, looking into her eyes.

"I feel great," he replied, "No hang-over in sight. Thanks to your really nice wake-up call, I guess. And I think your marvellous breakfast din't do me no harm, either." He leaned in close to claim her lips. She smiled as he gently sucked on her lower lip. A small sigh escaped her when his hand along her thigh to squeeze her buttock as his tongue pushed its way through her lips, grazing her teeth and playfully poking her tongue – not unlike a puppy begging for a playmate. Bedelia obeyed, rubbing her tongue against his as his other hand crept up her front to find her hand and entwine their fingers between them. Holding this position, the pair dozed off for some more sleep until they became hungry. Bedelia got up carefully, trying not to wake Murdoc up _._ She adjusted her dressing gown and went into the kitchen to check her inventory. After a few minutes, she settled for potatoes with bacon and butter as a meal since she had bought a bag of small potatoes with edible skin.

The bassist descended the stairs when the potatoes were cooked and the butter was melted. Bedelia was busy setting the table when Murdoc entered the kitchen and pulled her into an embrace. He hummed his agreements at the sight of the meal, kissing her cheek and sat down when Bedelia put a soup plate and a fork in front of him. She went to get the beverages and the ice-balls before filling her own plate with potatoes, bacon bits and melted butter and sitting down.

Murdoc took his time to cherish every bite and sip, thinking about how to tell her that he had to leave again soon. Thoughtfully, he licked the mashed potatoes and a few drops of butter off his fork, looking at Bedelia. He swallowed and cleared his throat.

"I... err..." he started, reaching out to take hold of her hand.

"What is it?" Bedelia asked, gently squeezing his hand. Murdoc took a deep breath and replied, "Hafta go back to work." The sentence fell out of his mouth, almost in one word. Smiling, Bedelia raised his hand to kiss the back.

"I know you can't stay forever," she said, "It was wonderful to have you here, and I'm gonna miss you for sure. But you've got a job to do, and I don't wanna be your Yoko Ono or Nancy Spungen." Murdoc couldn't help laughing.

"All that matters is that you know you can come back anytime when you need to lie low," Bedelia added. Uttering a small laugh, she felt for the pockets of her dressing gown. Murdoc frowned when she produced a folded red sheet of paper, pushing it over to the bassist.

"What's this?" Suspiciously, he eyed the paper.

"Well... when a certain blue-haired singer is getting on your nerves again, give him this," Bedelia advised, giving an enigmatic smile, "If he's really as dim as you say, it'll keep him busy for hours. And I guess it's easier than putting him in a round room and telling him to go stand in the corner." Chuckling to himself at the picture of 2-D desperately seeking a non-existing corner, trying hard to obey until he'd drop down exhausted, Murdoc unfolded the paper, revealing the words "see over" in bold black letters written on both sides. Slowly, a grin spread on his face.

"Tell you what, luv, that's sheer brilliance," he said, getting up and kissing Bedelia's cheek, "Where did you find this?"

"I had a co-worker who couldn't count to twenty without taking her shoes off but thought her to be a boon to mankind. One day, when I was fed up of her chattering nonsense, I fixed up a paper like this and gave it to her. And what can I say – she was busy for half a day. Since then, she kept avoiding me until she quit last month. When she was gone, I made this second paper, just in case." Murdoc smiled to himself, folding the sheet again. Then, he got up and came to Bedelia's seat, sitting down on her lap astraddle and resting his arms on her shoulders. The silky smooth fabric of her gown against his skin made him struggle to keep his balance for a moment.

"I'm so glad I met you, my dirty-sweet girl," he then whispered, kissing her cheeks and lips when Bedelia wrapped her arms around his ribcage, pulling him in a tight embrace.

"Same here, my sexy beast," she replied, running her hands up and down his back. Murdoc couldn't help gasping and shivering when her fingertips accidently crossed his spine. Bedelia just smiled at this, gently rubbing his shoulder-blades. Murdoc felt relief wash through him. Generally, he didn't really care what other people might think about him. But of course he had always seen the judging looks towards him – like at his battered clothes throughout his childhood –, and if he'd say that they didn't bother him, he'd lie like a trooper. Thus, it was a great relief to have a retreat where he could be just himself in pleasant company. Suddenly, a thought crossed the bassist's mind.

"Say, luv," he whispered, his cheek snuggling against her temple, "You never said if you know my band at all." A small giggle escaped Bedelia before she said, "I know some songs from the charts. My favourite is _Feel Good Inc._ The most bassy intro I ever heard. Hearing it makes me shiver every time. Beats the extremely long guitar solo of _In A Gadda Da Vida_ by far. Do you really think I didn't know whose way I crossed that night?" Bedelia's smile widened. Murdoc shrugged, unable to hide a smile himself. Gently, he ran his hand over the back of her head.

"To be honest, I couldn't believe it when you asked me to come along," Bedelia continued, her eyes locking with his, "I mean, to think that a man as famous as you are would take a closer look at a poor little nothing like me..." Murdoc put his index finger against her lips, shushing her.

"Don't you talk so ill of yourself. You see, on this night I wanted to be with somebody who'd not just have a fling with a celebrity to brag about it," he explained, "You just treated me like any other man you'd meet. And that's why I wanted to spend time with you. Still do. Being with you is like being on vacation in a country knowing about music but not making a fuss about me being famous."

"I'll take this as a compliment, my sexy beast," Bedelia said, pulling him closer and claiming his lips.

"It is, my dirty-sweet girl," Murdoc said when their mouths parted.

"Thank you then." Bedelia smiled. She made their fingers entwine, running her thumb across the skin covering the bone beneath his index finger. Gently, the bassist squeezed her hand, smiling when the squeeze was returned. He extended his index finger to run it down her nose, poking the tip with the knuckle. Bedelia raised their entangled hands to plant a kiss on his wrist.

"Oh!" Murdoc suddenly said in a low voice, "Almost forgot – I don't know yet when we'll meet again. Dullard has been on my back for weeks about going on a tour throughout the States and South America. Might take half a year at least." Bedelia pulled him closer, resting her forehead against his.

"I know you have to go back to work," she whispered, "Just remember you can come to my place anytime you like or need to." Murdoc couldn't help smiling when her hand slowly crept up his back, rubbing his nape.

"I guess I can make it back around Christmas, and I'd be very happy to spend it with you," he said thoughtfully, slowly running the nail of his index finger down her nape. Drawing in a sharp breath, Bedelia raised her head to smile at him.

"Wouldn't have thought you'd care about Christmas," she said. The bassist cupped her chin and brushed his lips against hers.

"Well... some people are worth it," he said with the ghost of a smile touching the corners of his mouth, "But speaking of it... how do you spend Christmas?" Bedelia thought for a moment.

"I'm flexible on Christmas," she explained, "To me, that's just a time to spend with people you like being with and a time to share presents and good meals. Most years I spend it with Maureen."

"Very good attitude..." Murdoc whispered against her forehead.

"Speaking of it... what's served in England for Christmas?" Bedelia asked.

"Roastbeef mostly... either with traditional Yorkshire pudding or with spuds and mint sauce," the bassist replied.

"Yorkshire pudding... looks like fluffy muffins with a dent on top, right?" Bedelia wondered. Again, the bassist nodded, the ghost of a smile touching the corners of his mouth as he ran his hands from her shoulders to her breasts and said, "When I'll be playing _Feel Good Inc._ , I'll be thinking of you, my lovely."

"Thanks," Bedelia whispered, returning the smile and closing her eyes when his fingers gently pinched and rubbed the left nipple. She ran her hands up and down his nape and back in respond before running her hands along his buttocks and thighs.

On the next after-noon, Murdoc collected his things, put them into his car and pulled Bedelia into a good-bye hug and kiss.

"Take care of yourself, my sexy beast," she whispered against his chest before he raised her chin to claim her lips.

"I will," the bassist answered when their lips parted, running his hand over her hair while watching Cortez perch on a nearby tree. The raven looked back at the bassist but stayed put. Murdoc shrugged it off and claimed Bedelia's lips for a kiss. When they released each other minutes later, she went in. Noticing Cortez, she opened a window, inviting the bird in.

"You're not going with him?" she wondered when Cortez came to perch on the armrest of the armchair she was sitting on. The raven crooned in reply, nudging her arm.

"Hungry?" Bedelia asked, smiling when the bird crooned again. She got up and searched the kitchen. After a while, she returned with a small bowl of crumbled salted potato chips and a cup of cold water, placing both on the table.

"Sorry I don't have eye balls for you," she said as Cortez stepped closer to inspect both suspiciously before he took the first beak of potato chips and a few quick sips of water. When he had enough, he stood in front of Bedelia, spreading his wings and wiping his beak against her nose.

"You're welcome, Cortez," she said, gently running the knuckles of her index finger along the glossy feathers beneath his beak in return, "Glad you like the potatoes. Just let me know when you want more." Cortez gave a low cawing in reply. Smiling, Bedelia watched the raven make himself comfortable on a couch cushion. She went to get a knitted blanket and snuggled into the armchair to get some rest until she felt a poke against her nose. When she opened her eyes, she found herself being watched by Cortez. The raven turned his head at the nearest window and cawed insistently. Bedelia got up and opened the window for him.

"Have a good time," she said when the raven went to perch on the window-sill. A low cawing was given before Cortez spread his wings and flew off. Bedelia took the chance to hear some music. Tonight, she was in the mood for a few assorted songs from PINK FLOYD'S THE WALL. It just took minutes until a nasally yet strong voice filled the room, joined by fluid bass riffs and a quickly strummed guitar, accompanied by some piano notes every now and then. The song Bedelia had chosen first was about how to satisfy the growing greed of modern life, often leading to severe mental or physical damage. Since it was one of her favourite songs, she closed her eyes and sang along.

The song was followed by a song about the pure cruelty of war and another one about an over-protective mother.

Two days before Christmas, Maureen called Bedelia to invite her for the holidays. Bedelia was happy to agree.

"Is it just you coming?" Maureen asked, "What about Mr. Green-skin Snaggle-tooth?"

"He's still on tour through the States and South America," Bedelia reported.

"On tour?" Maureen was audibly surprised.

"Uh-hu," Bedelia said, "Takes longer than he thought, I guess. He said he might be back around Christmas."

"He _might,_ Sweetie," Maureen repeated thoughtfully.

"You don't like him, Dear, do you?" Bedelia said.

"Honestly, Sweetie, I've seen wolverines with nicer smiles," Maureen replied, her voice trembling, "And what's with that up-side down cross he wears? That's a... a satanic symbol, for all I remember. Gives me the creeps, Sweetie, just like his teeth. Satanists are said to do the weirdest things, and this guy makes me think of a vampire. Just like, one taste of your life, and he owns your soul. But if he can make you as happy as I think he can, I won't argue. All I ask you to is to be careful, Sweetie." Bedelia promised, and the friends fell silent for a moment until Bedelia suddenly said, "Oh, almost forgot. There's something I'd like to eat for Christmas this year."

"What?"

"Roastbeef."

"Roastbeef? Just for you? Mind you, never done that before." Maureen chuckled to herself.

"Yep. And you know I trust in your great cooking skills, Dear. I'll bring all the ingredients when I come around."

"Okay, Sweetie," Maureen gave in, "We'll have my special meatloaf pizza on Christmas Eve and your required roastbeef on Christmas Day, then."

"Thanks, Dear. You're the best friend one can have," Bedelia said before the call was finished. She went to make a list of the things needed for the meatloaf pizza – basically being mincemeat mixed up with vegetables and spices and spread on a baking sheet to be baked in the oven – as well as her required Christmas meal, calculating the costs.

In the middle of the Night of New Year's Eve, Bedelia was woken up by the sound of a key opening her front door and steps creeping up the stairs. She rolled over and pretended to sleep when the steps came to a halt next to her bed. Relief washed through her when she caught a sniff of Murdoc's scent. She opened her eyes to see the bassist sitting down on the edge of her bed and running his hand along her upper body beneath the covers, his long nails grazing the fabric of her bright red polka dot camisole top she wore with matching panties. Yawning heartily, the bassist took off his clothes and crept underneath the covers to hug Bedelia and kiss her forehead. He smiled to himself when she gave a low moan in response. Carefully, he ran his hands along her bare arms and hands, making their fingers entwine. Unable to hide a smile at this gesture, Bedelia opened her eyes and whispered, "Good to have my sexy beast back in one piece. Happy New Year."

"Good to be back in one piece, my dirty-sweet girl. Happy New Year to you, too," the bassist whispered back, letting his mouth wander along her neck and collarbone, sucking and kissing the soft skin there. Bedelia closed her eyes, melting into the touches.

"I missed you so much," Murdoc said between two kisses.

"Missed you, too," Bedelia replied, running her fingers through his hair and down his nape. Murdoc closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

"You know, I really missed you," he whispered. He fell silent for a moment before he added, "If only... if only..."

"If only?" Bedelia asked. Murdoc took another deep breath before he said, "If only I never had to leave you again."

"Remember, you're welcome at my place anytime," Bedelia said, raising their hands to kiss his knuckles one by one.

"Anyway," the bassist said, smiling at the touch, "You're the most interesting girl I ever met. I... can't believe I'm saying this... I love you, Bedelia Tozier. I... oh, I'll be damned... I don't wanna loose you." He sniveled, unable to speak on. Bedelia gasped for air.

"I love you too, Murdoc Niccals," she then said, "I feel good when I'm with you. You're great company and a lover out of the ordinary." Relief washed through her, having heard the words she had hoped for and hadn't dared to say herself – not sure about the bassist's reaction. She couldn't see his face but his voice, rough-handled as it was, almost sounded like his chuckle as Murdoc said, "I wish we could... well... become one..."

"Like... like being married?" Bedelia whispered.

"Sort of," the bassist said, rolling on his back and pulling her close against his ribcage. Bedelia took a deep breath and closed her eyes when he snuggled his chin against her forehead. But after all she had heard now, she found it hard to get some rest. The pair stayed in bed until they became hungry in the early after-noon.

"Egg in a basket?" Bedelia suggested. Murdoc agreed and sat up against the padded head part of the bed as Bedelia got up and put on her silk dressing gown and a pair of black worn-out flat sandals she used to wear as slippers. At the door, she turned around and looked at him.

"Wanna wait here or come with me?" she asked, a meaningful smile crawling across her lips. Smiling back, Murdoc pushed the covers off and got up. She held her hand out to him as he came closer. Hand in hand, they wandered down into the kitchen.

Bedelia switched on the coffee-maker and went through the cabinets and her fridge for the needed ingredients and cookware while the bassist sat down at the table. Bedelia produced a box of her black cigarettes and a lighter from her gown's pocket and put both in front of him, along with the tiny earless red cup filled with tap water as a substitute ashtray. Murdoc lit up a cigarette and flopped back in his chair, blowing smoke circles in the air.

While cooking, Bedelia thought about what he had said about becoming one. She wasn't sure what to make of it. It sounded interesting, of course. Yet, she didn't dare to ask him about it.

When the bassist had emptied his cup and Bedelia had shared a couple of Egg in a Basket on two plates, he got up and snuggled against her back. His hand holding the cigarette steadied them against the counter as his other hand slipped underneath her gown to caress her front. Cupping her crotch, he kissed her neck.

"I like what you said last night," Bedelia said.

"And I like what you said last night," the bassist replied, his hand creeping up to caress her throat.

"Wouldn't have thought you'd think about things like getting married and such," she added.

"Not in a traditional way," he clarified.

"Then what did you mean?"

Murdoc released her to take a plate and sit down again.

"Come here, my lovely," he said, holding his hand out to her, "Let me explain. I wanna schedule the time to be with you and be true to you. Like a marriage without the rings."

"And how?" Bedelia sat down on the chair next to him and looked into his eyes. To her surprise, Murdoc handed her his empty cup.

"Smash it and count the shards," he explained, "I'll be all yours for as many years as there are shards on the floor." Bedelia closed her eyes and hurled the cup against the counter next to her stove. As she got up to get a new cup and the coffee pitcher, Murdoc went to look the cup shards over and count them by picking them up and putting them on a small red plate. When he was done, he handed the plate to Bedelia who had pulled the pan off the burner, had poured two cups of coffee and had returned to her seat with her plate.

"Thirteen," he announced, sitting back on his chair and reaching out to take her hand.

"Thirteen?" Bedelia repeated.

"Thirteen," Murdoc agreed, getting up and pulling her against him. Bedelia wrapped her arms around his middle and snuggled her head against his chest.

"I think, we're gonna have a good time," she whispered against his skin, slowly running her hands down his back. Murdoc hummed his agreements, gently running his hand down her back.


End file.
